Harry Potter: 19 Years Later

Chapter 47: A Long-Dreaded Visit

Why, you and your friends are destined to save Hogwarts, of course, replied Rowena, like it was no big deal.

Excuse me?!

This bit of dialogue between her and Rowena Ravenclaw had been haunting Rose for a month now. She never shared this with anyone; not even Scorpius. Because, quite frankly, the very idea of being destined to save Hogwarts scared the living hell out of her. Rose usually wasn't one to buckle under pressure, but this kind of pressure had began suffocating her. Nagging her every second of the day.

It'd been 28 days since Rose had had any mishap with her powers. You could say she was an expert at them now. Rose now had no issue levitating objects across the room without almost decapitating someone, and she could even transform into her Animagus form willingly. Professor McGonagall helped her become registered as an Animagi. Life was pretty good for Rose.

That idea totally went down the drain when she realized what day it was. August 31st.

Tomorrow was the first day of Rose's sixth year at Hogwarts.

Were her and her friends even allowed to go back to Hogwarts? They'd basically been kicked out, for Merlin's sake! Rose had been hearing whispers around the Burrow that the Ministry might be paying a visit to inspect the reincarnations' progress with their powers. Being known as one of the four 'reincarnations' was something Rose never thought she would get used to. Once this summer, she went with her mother to Flourish And Blotts in Diagon Alley, only to be stared at the whole time by everyone they came across.

Apparently the entire wizarding world knew of the Four Founders' prophecy.

Since then, Rose had never been out in public, so it would definitely be nice to leave to Burrow if she was allowed back at Hogwarts. She was extremely eager to learn new things and get her hands on some new books. It was difficult to find books at Flourish And Blotts that Rose had not read these days.

In the living room, while Rose reminisced and skimmed over Hogwarts: A History for what seemed like the millionth time, Albus and Scorpius were busy practicing some basic charms on various items, which they tended to struggle with at times. Holly was painting her toenails the Muggle way, claiming it was more fun and challenging than using magic. Rose sometimes didn't understand Holly, but she didn't question her.

"You think they'll let us back at Hogwarts?" Albus asked the group, probably knowing that was on everyone's mind.

"Well, they can't keep us on house arrest forever," Rose grumbled, feeling anger bubble up inside her. The lights in the room flickered. "It's inhumane."

"I think we're ready to go back," Holly said optimistically. "Remember when neither of us could walk in a room without something exploding or flying everywhere? We've learned to control our powers. I think we're ready to face our biggest challenge yet."

Rose knew the biggest challenge Holly was referring to was Hogwarts. Being around people again who knew what the four of them were capable of terrified her. What if they couldn't control their powers and they ended up hurting someone? Rose knew she wouldn't be able to handle the guilt if that happened. Were they really ready to go back?

"Guys, going back might be a bad idea..."

An abrupt knock sounded at the door, interrupting Rose mid sentence. Her heart sunk as she realized who was here.

* * *

"They're here," Rose whispered, her face turning white as snow. It took a second for Scorpius to understand his girlfriend's fear.

"Bloody hell..." He muttered under his breath, suddenly feeling nauseated.

Albus's parents were the first ones to reach to door, and it was then that Scorpius noticed the fear dawn on their faces. They were expecting their guests.