"Dad!" Lily exclaimed as she burst through the door of the safe house. "Mom! Uncle Ron! Aunt Hermione!" Harry was the first one in the kitchen and the rest hurried in on his tail. "Lily, what's wrong?" He asked urgently. "It's Maddie. Just go outside. But-" Harry didn't wait for what came after 'but'. He was in the front yard in seconds. He sighed in relief to see the girl in an obvious healthy state. In fact, she was smiling. Lily came down the steps. "I was going to say 'but everything's okay'."

Maddie turned towards her best friend's father. "Hufflepuff is where squibs go." He furrowed his eyebrows. The trio that had figured it out, the Ravenclaws, stood beside Maddie. "Uncle Harry, she isn't a squib. Otherwise she'd be in Hufflepuff, right?" Harry just stood there, frozen, processing what his niece had just told him. Hermione shook her head in disbelief. "Of course. How did I not see it?" Maddie started twirling the end of her braid around her finger. She found herself breathless. "Do you really think so?" She managed. Hermione was silent for a second. Hugo ran past his mother, into the house, and when he returned had Maddie's wand in hand. He held it out to her. Maddie looked at the wooden stick in a way she had never before. It could be more than a stick.

She held out a shaky hand and wrapped her fingers around her wand. Almost everybody who resided in the safe house was on the grass patch in the forest that they considered their front lawn. Maddie turned the simple wand over in hand, remembering the day she got it. It was hard. The wand chooses the wizard or witch. But that day she stepped into Ollivander's. Lena had come out with her wand squealing, "Dad! It's dragon heartstring! That's what I wanted!" Maddie tried out her first wand. Nothing happened. Second wand, a paper on the desk blew off. Third wand, something happened. Her hair began to blow lightly and the wand somehow came alive. The next thing she knew, she was walking out of the wand shop with it in hand. That moment, until now, she thought meant nothing.

Maddie turned her back to the safe house family and closed her eyes. You can't be a squib. She told herself. You can't be. Maddie reopened her eyes and focused on a grey rock a few feet away. She pointed her wand at it with all her might. Her hand was shaking and her lip was trembling. "Wingardium..." She began in a loud voice, "Leviosa."

The rock flipped over and then something simply... magical occurred. It floated up in the air. Maddie shreiked in amazement! This was actually happening. She felt arms wrap themselves around her shoulders. "Maddie!" Lily shouted. She turned and embraced her best friend full on, hearing the rock clatter to the ground. Hugo joined the hug. When they pulled away Maddie didn't hide her face, which had tears rolling down it. Claire, Rose, and Sara came up to her next to embrace her. "I'm not a squib." She whispered to herself. She was in a different world as the adults hugged and congratulated her. She was a witch.

---

It was three in the morning, and Lily had tip-toes into Hugo and Maddie's room to teach the newly pronounced witch some spells. First they made her soundproof the room. Then came things like Alohmora, Lumos, Reducto, repairo, and more. Maddie knew most of which already because she had always paid careful attention at school, but let her best friends have the fun of teaching her.

"Accio pillow!" Maddie chanted the latest spell and watched her pillow zoom into her waiting hands. Every time she cast a spell her fingers tingled... still in awe by her power. "Oh here's another one I remember!" Maddie exclaimed. She remembered reading something on how to preform it that, actually, quoted Lily's father.

"Think of the happiest memory you can."

She grinned to herself, and replayed her casting that very first spell only hours ago. "Expecto Patronum." Hugo and Lily both fell silent and razor focused. They both knew that a patronus was not a beginner level spell, and neither one believed she could do it.

A transparent blue glow was lighting the end of Maddie's wand. As if the patronus was struggling to get out. But, to the shock of all three, a Phoenix flapped its wings and soared around the room. Lily started chasing it, while Hugo just stood there, wonder struck by the patronus. The marvelous bird faded and soon was nothing more than the air.

Lily yawned deeply. "I best be getting to sleep. You guys, too." She hugged Maddie and Hugo in turn and sleepily tip toed back to her room. Hugo climbed into his bed. "Goodnight, witch." Maddie loved the sound of that. She also loved the way his voice sounded saying that.

She whispered a "goodnight" and curled up under her blankets. Today was the perfect day.

When she opened her eyes up in the morning it was eight-thirty, and Hugo was still fast asleep. Maddie got dressed quietly and slipped out the door with her wand in her pocket, just like all the other witches and wizards do. She made her way to the kitchen for breakfast to find Mrs. Potter at the stove and saw pancakes being added to an already large tower. Lily and Rose were already at the table. "Good morning, Maddie." Ginny smiled and handed her a plate. "They'll be ready soon." Maddie thanked her and took her seat at the table.

After breakfast she went outside and just sat on the steps. This had become a hobby of hers when she needed time to think. She considered writing to her parents and Lena explaining how she really wasn't a squib, but decided against the idea finally. She was just gazing at the sky when Hugo stepped out into the yard. "Hey." She said. He sat down beside her, "'Morning witch." There that was again.

Maddie ran a hand through her tangled hair that she only brushed briefly this morning. "I still can't believe it, Hugo. I always thought that I was a squib." He grinned, "I wouldn't care if you were a squib, or a witch, or a goblin. I'm just glad to see you so happy." Maddie's stomach fluttered. This boy always knew what to say, and said it perfectly.

Lily came outside and jumped down from the highest step, and into the garden.

Maddie raised her eyebrows. "Aren't you going to say hi?" Lily stopped but didn't turn around. She then noticed that Lily's shoulders were trembling.

Maddie got up and walked over to her best friend, carefully wrapping an arm around her. "What's wrong?" Hugo was there in a second, standing before his cousin.

Lily Luna wiped her eyes. "It's my dad." Hugo's eyes bulged with alarm. "What's wrong?!" She leaves her head on Maddie's shoulder. "He's leaving." Maddie and Hugo looked at each other, confused on what "he's leaving" meant. Hugo ran inside.

"It's okay, Lils. Everything's going to be okay."

Lily sniffled, "Let's go inside."

Maddie was only halfway past the threshold when she heard the voice of Harry. "I have to do this. You can't stop me, Hugo. You're just a boy." Maddie left Lily in the doorway of the kitchen and rounded the hallway corner to the family room where Harry and Hugo were arguing.

"Going off to fight him... Uncle Harry! That's your worst idea yet." Hugo exclaimed.

"Marvello needs to be killed. Hugo, you wouldn't understand."

"Does Aunt Ginny know?" Hugo asked.

Harry bowed his head. "I haven't gotten around to telling her yet. I'm doing it tonight."

Maddie had heard enough, she ran down the hallway back to Lily. "I'm so sorry." She embraced her friend again. "But don't be so worried. He's Harry Potter. I think your dad has had some practice in battling dark wizards."

Lily buried her face in her hands. "Maddie. Aren't your parents with Marvello?"

The reality hit Maddie with the force of a car. Harry could kill her parents. He could kill Lena.

She had sworn to herself
that her family didn't mean anything to her anymore. She wouldn't even call them her family. So why did she feel like somebody had just punched her in the gut? She never wanted her family to be killed in the period of time since Lena left, but she had hoped for their displeasure.

Lena was her twin sister. And she loved her probably more than anybody else in her family... she had been Maddie's best friend up until Hogwarts. If anything were to happen to Lena... she shuddered at the thought. No, she had to protect her twin. But how?

"Maddie?" Lily rubbed her arm. "You okay?" She snapped back to real life.

She nodded carefully. "Lily," she began, "you're my best friend. And... I want you to always know that. Even if we are apart, I'll still be your best friend, okay?" She spoke precisely, and slowly, trying not to alarm Lily.

Her best friend nodded, with a puzzled look. "Uh, thanks. You too, Mads." The confusion that decorated her words was obvious. Lily excused herself and walked away in the direction of her bedroom.

Maddie went to her room and pulled out a small backpack from beneath her bed. Quickly she packed up some of her favorite clothes, her wand, and a couple other things. Finally, she hesitated before picking up her Gryffindor tie and placing that in the bag last.

Ivy rubbed up against her leg. She scooped up the cat, kissing the top of its forehead as she made her way across the room to Hugo's bed. She laid her sleeping kitten on his bed, knowing he would take care of her.

She was about to leave Hugo's space, when she saw one of his shirts just laying there on the floor by his bed. Maddie hesitated before bending down and picking up his shirt. She then scurried across the room and stuffed it in her backpack. Just something to remember him by.

She closed the bag and put it back under her bed, not sure the exact time she would need it, just that she would... and soon. Maddie made her second big plan of the year. And this time, she was going succeed. This plan was to be executed without Lena... this time, it was for Lena.