When Rosalyn got back to the common room, she learnt something else. Harry and Cho has also kissed, and not like her and Neville's on-the-cheek kiss, this one was proper.
So, as this was the hot topic among the quartet, Rosalyn refrained from telling her news just yet as Ron asked his best mate, "Well... how was it?"
"Wet," was Harry's immediate answer, until the other three looked at him weirdly. "I mean, she was sort of crying."
"That bad at it, are you?" Ron laughed.
"I'm sure Harry's kissing was more than satisfactory!" Hermione stepped in. "Anyway, Cho spends half her time crying these days."
"You'd think a bit of snogging would cheer her up," Ron was beside himself with laughter.
"Well, don't you understand how she must be feeling?" Hermione asked. Ron and Harry shook their heads, so she explained. "Well, obviously she's feeling sad about her mother, because Umbridge just sacked her from her job at the Ministry, and therefore she's confused about liking Harry because he's going against everything her mum's telling her, and also guilty about kissing him. She's conflicted because Umbridge just sacked her mum but she can't speak out against her and frightened about failing her O.W.L.s because she's too busy worrying about everything else!"
There was a silence that followed, then Ron said, "One person couldn't feel all that. They'd explode."
"Just because you've got the emotional range of a teaspoon," Hermione said. She spoke like she was serious, but then she burst into laughter, and so did the other three.
"You alright, Rosie?" Hermione asked observantly, "You've been very quiet."
"I'm fine," Rosalyn said quickly. "I- I-"
"I saw you hang back as well," Ron said. "What happened?"
Rosalyn sighed, "Nothing- nothing- I'm fine-" she sighed, lowering her voice before saying. "I- I kissed Neville."
There was an outburst of laughter from the other three. "Rosie!" Ron yelled.
"Wait a sec, tell me everything!" Hermione laughed.
"Tell us," Harry pointed out.
Rosalyn sighed again and explained the story. "And it was all stupid Fred and George's fault! Just because I wouldn't listen to them..." she finished.
"I still can't believe you and Neville kissed!" Hermione squealed.
"It was just on the cheek, Hermione, it's not that exciting," Rosalyn rolled her eyes.
But as Rosalyn climbed into bed later that evening, she was excited. Excited for what was to come.
☆☆☆
She was moving along that corridor again... and to the door. She was nearly at it... she was opening it...
Sirius's voice came back to her. "Voldemort may be after something... something he didn't have last time..."
She was in a room full of shelves, on those shelves were glass orbs... there was someone in there... someone with a lit wand...
Arthur Weasley was in the room. He turned with an urgency and looked shocked when he saw her... but she wasn't herself...
She struck him, and he fell, blood spattering... she struck again and again... he was nothing more than a bloody mass...
Rosalyn awoke with a start. She was sweating buckets and Hermione asked her if she was alright. The next thing she knew, Hermione had called for Harry and Ron, and McGonagall, and the four of them rushed her along to Dumbledore's office. They were all still in their bedclothes, but it didn't matter.
When she got there, she was alone with her friends, but it wasn't long before Fred, George and Ginny arrived. Rosalyn looked at her headmaster, who had lots of questions. "In the dream, were you standing next to the victim, or looking down upon the scene?" But no matter what she did, he still wouldn't look at her.
"Neither, I was the snake," Rosalyn said. She knew they wouldn't believe her, but she said it anyway. "Professor can you please just tell me what's happening?"
"Everhardt," he addressed a portrait in his office. "Arthur's on guard duty tonight, make sure he is found by the right people."
"Sir, can you please just bloody-" Rosalyn said, but was cut off.
"Phineas," Dumbledore went on, addressing another portrait. "You must go to your portrait at Grimmauld Place. Tell them that Arthur Weasley is gravely injured, and that his children, Hermione Granger, Harry, and Rosalyn Potter will be arriving soon, by portkey."
"They've got him, Albus," the portrait guy called Everhardt said, "I was close, but I think he'll make it. What's more, the Dark Lord failed to acquire it."
"Ahh, good-"
"LOOK AT ME!"
Rosalyn was panting and sweating. She had just been so angry at Dumbledore just then, she had wanted to-
But he had turned. He had made eye contact with Rosalyn for the first time since June. "What's happening to me?" Rosalyn asked, nearly crying.
Dumbledore (who only might have answered) was suddenly distracted by Snape, who had suddenly arrived and said, "You wished to see me headmaster?"
"Severus," Dumbledore said, "I'm afraid we can't wait. Not even until morning. Otherwise we will all be vulnerable."
Next thing Rosalyn knew, she was getting dragged down stairs by the arm, Snape pulling her harshly. When they got to their destination (Snape's office) the potions master started to talk. Rosalyn sat down and listened.
"It appears there is a connection between the Dark Lord's mind and your own. Whether he is aware of this connection is, as yet, unknown. Pray he remains ignorant."
"You mean if- he knows about it he'll be able to read my mind?" Rosalyn asked in shock.
"Read it. Control it. Unhinge it..." Snape continued. "In the past, it was often the Dark Lord's pleasure to invade the minds of his victims, creating visions designed to torture them into madness. Only after extracting the last ounce of madness, only when he had them literally begging for death did he finally... kill them."
He was walking closer to Rosalyn now. "Used properly the power of occlumency will help shield you from access or influence. In these lessons I will attempt to penetrate your mind, you will attempt to resist. Prepare yourself. Legillimens!"
This made Rosalyn's mind shoot back.
Hermione was hugging her when she came to Grimmauld Place...
The dementor was swarming upon her...
The DA... all the lessons... the figure of Filch...
Voldemort at the train station... the dream...
Uncle Vernon wanting her out...
"Concentrate, Potter! Focus..." Snape said, and she was pulled back to real life...
Rosalyn sighed, looking outside before she was plunged back into her memories, watching the snow swirl outside in the darkness.
☆☆☆
Christmas time! Rosalyn was in Grimmauld Place with everyone else. Today, though, was Christmas day, and it was special because-
"There we go!" Molly shifted her husband into a chair. "Daddy's back!"
Rosalyn clapped with everyone else at this as she saw Arthur. He had scratches all over his face, but he was alive. And that's what mattered.
Rosalyn had to dodge a levitating Santa and sleigh before she sat down. "That's it everybody! Now, presents!" Molly smiled as she gave them out.
In the end, Rosalyn got a scarlet jumper that, although it clashed with her hair, she loved. It also had a green R on it, which she smiled to see.
Fred and George got scarves, Ginny a jumper and Ron, a furry waistcoat with a maroon R on it. He didn't seem to like it, however.
"Thanks, Molly," Rosalyn said, hugging her.
"Oh, it's all right! Merry Christmas, dear," Molly said, hugging her adoptive daughter. "Right, drinks!" She said, pouring some oak matured mead into some glasses.
After everyone had got their glasses, Arthur announced, "A Christmas toast! To Miss Rosalyn Potter, without whom I would not be here. Rosie."
"Rosie," everyone copied.
"Rosie," two late additions added. Sirius and Izzy Black raised their glasses to Rosalyn and winked at her in doing so. Rosalyn smiled at them. They would talk later.
And so they did. Heading down the stairs, Rosalyn heard Ron and Hermione, having an argument.
"I can't understand why you don't want to wear it, Ronald," she said, referring to the waistcoat.
"'Cause I look like a bloody idiot, that's why!" Ron shot back.
"No more than usual, Ronald," Hermione sighed.
Because Harry was laughing and the other two bickering, none of them noticed Rosalyn veering off into a room with a family tree for wallpaper.
"Nasty brat standing there as bold as brass," said the house elf. "Rosalyn Potter, the girl who stopped the Dark Lord, friend of mudblood's and blood traitors alike-"
"KREACHER! Enough of your vile! Away with ya!" Sirius and Izzy stood in the doorway, Sirius yelling at the house elf.
"Of course, Master, Kreacher lives to serve the Noble House of Black," the elf bowed low and left.
"Sorry about that," Sirius said to Rosalyn, "He never was very pleasant. Even when I was a boy, not to me, anyway..."
"Y- you grew up here?" Rosalyn asked. "This- this is your house?"
"This was my parents house," Sirius said sadly. "I offered it to Dumbledore as headquarters, about the only useful thing I've been able to do."
"Don't start with that," snapped Izzy. "You've done plenty of useful things for the order, Siri, you just can't see it."
Rosalyn, meanwhile, had moved on, as she looked at the wallpaper family tree. "Is this your family?" She asked.
Sirius sighed. "That's my deranged cousin," he pointed to Bellatrix Lestrange. "I hated the lot of them. My parents with their, pure blood mania," He pointed to a place that said Sirius Black, but the picture was burnt off. A cigarette burn, Rosalyn thought. "My mother took that off after I ran away," Sirius said, but he didn't seem sad. "Charming woman, I was sixteen."
"Where did you go?" Rosalyn asked, bewildered.
"Mine," Izzy smiled warmly. "Well, mine and James'."
"I was always welcome at the Potter's," smiled Sirius. "Especially once they found out I was dating their daughter."
Both Izzy and Rosalyn chuckled.
"We see them so much in you, you know that?" Izzy said more seriously to Rosalyn. "You're brave, and unafraid, and so, so good."
But this just made the confused girl even more confused.
"I'm not so sure," Rosalyn said hesitantly. "Sirius, Izzy... when I... when I saw Mr Weasley attacked I wasn't just watching... I was the snake. And- and afterwards in Dumbledore's office there was a moment when I- I wanted to-"
She sighed, her voice shaky. "This connection between me and Voldemort. What if the reason for it is that I'm becoming more like him? I just feel so angry... all the time and- what if after everything I've been through, something's gone wrong inside me? What if I'm becoming bad-"
She stopped by the look that both Sirius was giving her. He put his hands on her shoulders and said. "I want you to listen to me very carefully, Rosie. You're not a bad person. You're a very good person, who, bad things have happened to. You understand?"
Rosalyn nodded.
"Besides," Sirius said. "The- the world isn't split into good people and death eaters we all have both light, and dark inside of us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That's who we really are."
Izzy nodded. "I could tell you countless times James and Siri did stupid, even dangerous things, it doesn't make them bad, it just means that, in that moment, they've made a bad decision."
Rosalyn smiled and she would've answered, as she was now feeling a lot more reassured, but Hermione came in right then, saying gently, "Rosie? Time to go."
Rosalyn and Sirius walked slowly to the door. "When all this is over, we'll be a proper family," Sirius said. Rosalyn grinned at him and Izzy, happy, before hugging him and then moving to her, holding on as though she would never let go.
She didn't want to let go, either, but she had to. She had to follow Hermione and go to Hogwarts, which, even though she was sad to think it, brought more negatives than positives these days.