Autumn seemed to arrive suddenly that year. The morning of the first of September was crisp and as fresh as dawn. A now-adult Dove rushed around her house, flicking her wand around in order to clean up.

"Victoria! Get down here! We are going to be late!" She called up the stairwell, hoping the message would reach her daughter.

"I said one more minute, Mum! I need to fit this in... my trunk!" There was a loud crash from upstairs, causing an older Dove to sigh. She ran her fingers through her thick hair, standing at the end of the stairwell in her house. A door opened across the room, causing Dove to turn and frown.

"I'd say that's going well," Her husband chuckled, kissing her on her head while grabbing his coat from the couch.

"She's just like her Aunt. Annoyingly stubborn... Victoria!"

"One minute, Mum!"

"Well then, I'd say we named her accordingly." Her husband nodded, gesturing to the kitchen. "He's all set up and ready to go."

"That makes one of our children..." Dove sighed, storming up the staircase, leaving her husband to chuckle to himself as Dove's voice rose.

"I told you, you do not bring those fireworks! I don't care if they were a gift from George! They are staying home!"

"DAD! Can I bring the fireworks that Uncle George gave me for my birthday?" The sound of footsteps came running down the stairs as a young girl came into view. Victoria was a spitting image of her mother, and they were both wearing the same frown.

Dove watched her husband as he sighed. "Vicky, listen to your mother, alright? We haven't got time for this. Dove, he's in the kitchen."

Dove nodded, walking past her daughter and turning to her husband. "Make sure she gets packed." When she walked out of the room, her husband turned to his daughter, who was pouting.

"Hide the box under a couple of jumpers in your trunk. Now come on. If the train leaves without you I'm not driving you."

Dove sat down next to her son, who was seated on a chair against the window. "Are you excited?" She asked him, glanced over at his trunk which was fully packed.

Her son nodded, fiddling with his robes. "I'm a bit nervous," He admitted, "But excited."

"That's perfectly normal," Dove replied, running her fingers through his hair to straighten the top of it out. "And you're sister will be there to help you out and take care of you."

"What if we're in different houses?" Vicky asked, appearing at the kitchen door.

"You'll still take care of him because he is your brother," Dove said, narrowing her eyes. Vicky put her hands up innocently, "I'm only joking, Mum, of course, I'll take care of him."

"Alright! Everyone pile in the car now! We've got to get going." Dove's husband called from the living room.

✧ ✦ ✧

The air was cool on the day of September first as the little family bobbed across the rumbling road towards the great sooty station, the fumes of car exhausts, and the breath of pedestrians sparkled.

The Muggles stared curiously at the two cages on the top of the carts, one with an old owl in it, and one with a toad. The family wove its way towards the barrier between platforms nine and ten.

"Now," Dove began as she hugged her daughter. "I want you on your very best behavior this year. I don't want to continue to be summoned up to McGonagall's because you're misbehaving. Do you understand me?"

"Yes, Mum." Vicky sighed, rolling her eyes. "And don't worry. I'll take care of my little brother too!" She grabbed her brother roughly, rubbing his head.

"Stop it!" He hissed, pushing away from her. Dove tilted her head, frowning. "You've been spending too much time with George and Ronald."

"Now, I don't think there's a such thing!" came a voice from behind them. Dove turned the moment Vicky squealed to see George and Angelina with their own children, Fred II and Roxanne Weasley.

Dove chuckled, hugging the both of them as a greeting. "Well, then I suppose you can tell me why my daughter has become more mischievous suddenly over the summer after spending most of it in your shop?"

George winked at Vicky. "Well, it seems she's caught us."

The whistle of the train gave a loud screech and Dove turned to her son, who eyed the train nervously. "Alright, listen. You have a good term, okay? Remember to study hard."

"You're not worried about what house I'm in?" He asked nervously, glancing at the rain as it hissed once more. Dove smiled, pulling him into a hug. "Of course I'm not. I'm worried about the fact that you're going to miss the train. Now go on!" She kissed the top of his head before hugging her daughter once more.

Dove's husband gently put his hand on his wife's back as they watched their children board the train and wave out the window.

"Have a good term!" Dove shouted as the train slowly began to pull away. She and her husband waved until the train was completely out of sight.

✧ ✦ ✧

Vicky knew she would get in trouble if she got caught, but like what Uncle George said, everything's more fun when you can get in trouble for it.

She crept through the dark halls of Hogwarts. It was nearly midnight, and completely past student curfew. Of course, Vicky knew this.

The halls were quiet as all the paintings had settled into sleep. Vicky's original plan was to go sneak some food from the kitchen, but her attention was otherwise diverted when she found a hallway she had never entered before.

Overtaken by curiosity, she pulled out her wand and proceeded to slowly walk down the center of the hall. When she was in total darkness, she pulled out her wand. "Lumos."

Several picture frames took up the walls around her. The paintings inside them slept soundly, unbothered by the sudden light.

As Vicky continued to stroll down, she noticed there were over fifty portraits alone in the hall. Yet again, curiosity got the best of her.

She noticed one painting was missing, meaning whoever's portrait that was had left their frame, and on the right of the empty frame was a sleeping woman.

The woman in the painting looked awfully familiar, but Vicky couldn't put her finger on it. She went to put her wand closer to the painting's face when the painting flinched.

"Hey, bloody hell, boundaries."

"Sorry..." Vicky took her wand away, staring up at the painting. She squinted, unable to see her properly in the dim light from her wand. The painting yawned, rubbing her eyelids.

The painting blinked for a moment, squinting at Vicky. "Ah, another night visitor. Haven't gotten those in a while. You know this is a perfectly good place to come and visit. Especially when we're all awake..."

"I'm sorry... I didn't mean—"

"Wait... put the light by your face. Let me look at you." Confused, Vicky did as told. She watched as the painting smiled, looking surprised.

"You don't happen to be Dove Silvers kid, do you?"

"Dove Silvers... oh, you mean... yes! That's my mom. I'm Vicky, er— that's what everyone calls me. My full name is Victoria."

The painting paused for a moment. A smile on her face, "Bloody hell... wait until I tell Freddie..." She murmured to herself, running her hands through her hair.

"I don't understand..." Vicky began, but the painting cut her off. "Alright, alright. Bring that wand over here, I want to get a better look at you. Godric, you really are Dove's kid!"

When Vicky pulled her wand towards the painting she felt her eyes widen as it suddenly clicked. "You're... wait..."

"Recognize me now, do you? I'm Tori. Tori Silvers. Your mum was my sister, so technically... that makes me your aunt."

And as she stared at Tori, Vicky's face broke out into a huge grin.

wow... i did it.
friendless is done...
thank you all for reading. i hope you enjoyed it as much as i did.
and no i didn't cry writing this chapter shut up

thank you all so much for reading!
this is my first actual good fanfic that i've finished!
it's mean the world to me, and was the only thing that got me through quarantine lol.

love you all!!

THE NEXT BOOK:

DESCRIPTION!

"It's like I never knew Victoria, I lived with her for years but I never knew her."

SECOND BOOK TO FRIENDLESS. SPOILERS AHEAD!

The battle of Hogwarts is over.

And Dove Silvers family is in shambles.

Her father sent to Azkaban for his loyalty to Voldemort, her brother on trial to meet her father's fate, her sister, Tori, dead, and her mother not mentally there.

Dove doesn't know what she'll do. So when she connects with a former twin and a certain slytherin to sort out their lives, she realizes things about her sister she never knew, and now she's trying to pull the pieces of her family back together.

POST BATTLE OF HOGWARTS!

love you all!!
thank you for this journey!
❤️❤️