Disclaimer: Everything you recognize is by J.K. Rowling.


Sometimes we don't know that the day you wake up will be the most important day of your life. That's what I didn't know would happen today. I knew that today was important, but I didn't know that it would change the face of my future. Luckily, I didn't know what was going to happen back then.

As the saying goes hindsight is twenty-twenty. Personally I don't think I'd ever give up a moment of it.

1-The Day Everything Changed

Come on… come on! The second hand finally reaches the twelve, and the clock starts ringing its alarm. Yes! My hand is smashing down on the alarm, before it goes for three seconds. Today's the day! I can't believe it's finally here! I've been waiting for this day since I was old enough to understand about school!

I throw my covers off, and jam my feet into my slippers, skidding across the room to my clothes, that I laid out on my dresser. Finally, today I am going to go to the one place on earth that I can be who I am, Hogwarts! I practically skip into the bathroom slamming the door behind me. I throw the lock, and go about getting ready for the day.

I hum a tune in the shower, scrubbing away merrily, thrilled beyond words for what is to come. When I'm finished, and changed, I stand in front of the mirror looking at my reflection. My light honey brown hair reaches my shoulders, and light blue eyes adorn my face. I grin at my reflection satisfied with what I see.

I open the door to the bathroom, and I'm greeted with the sight of my brother sleepily leaning against the doorjamb. "Morning Luka!" I greet him, giving him a dazzling smile. Luka stretches his arms above his light brown head, and yawns.

"Bloody hell Jamie, no one should be so cheery at this time." He answers with another yawn. I just grin at my twin, as he rubs his bleary grey eyes. He pushes into the Lou, and shuts the door behind him. Luka and I look a lot alike for twins, nearly identical just different being a boy and a girl.

I clamor down the stairs, and skid into the kitchen. The smells of a wonderful breakfast greet my nose. Standing in front of the stove, with wand brandished was my guardian Kingsley Shacklebolt. My smile grew at the sight of him. Ever since I was a toddler Kingsley has been a father to my brother and me.

Even though we're not related to him by blood, he still cares for us deeply. He's the only family that we have left, and we're the only family that he has. "Morning Kingsley!" I announce, sliding across the tile floor, and getting up on my tiptoes, so that I can kiss his cheek. Even with the extra height he still has to stoop down to meet me.

A low rumbly chuckle greets me. "Good morning Jamie, I see that you're in good spirits today." Kingsley's low voice says. I grin up at my guardian.

"Of course! Today is the first! You know what that means! Hogwarts!" I cry spreading my arms out, and giving a spin. He laughs, and shakes his baldhead at me.

"I honestly don't know where you get this energy from little one, and yes I do know that today is the day you go to school." Kingsley assures me. I grin at him, and bounce over to my seat. A few minutes later Luka shuffles into the room with a big yawn.

"Morning…" He greets trailing off at the end. I can't believe that he's still half asleep! Kingsley smiles at my brother, and brings over two plates of pancakes, with eggs and sausages. He sets them down in front of us with pumpkin juice.

"Good morning Luka! Are you two ready to go to Hogwarts today?" He asks the pair of us, sitting down at the table with his own food. I nod my head vigorously, and Luka grins at Kingsley.

"'Course! I can't wait to start Transfiguration, I can't wait until I can turn my desk into an animal!" Luka crows, his sleepy eyes turning excited at the prospect of learning more magic. Kingsley grins at Luka, and I roll my eyes. Why did I have to get stuck in the family of brainy people?

Not that I'm not smart or anything, it's just that I have other priorities as well. I can't wait to make friends and find out what house I'm going to be in. "An admirable thought. So, are the two of you packed?" He questions raising an eyebrow at us.

"Are you kidding? I've been packed since yesterday! This is going to be amazing! I can't wait to see the castle!" I gush, while my brother nods along. The two of us have been looking forward to going to school for a long time.

"Kingsley? Are we going to learn what our parents knew?" Luka asks softly, leveling his gaze at the plate. I feel my excitement for the day drift away as I focus on my guardian. He runs his big hand over his head, and lets out a soft sigh.

"Of course. You're parents were two of the strongest and smartest wizards I've ever seen. Your father was brilliant at potions, and your mum was a whiz at DADA and Transfiguration. By the time the two of you are through school, you'll be just as sharp as they were." He tells us.

I feel warm hearing about my parents. They died when we were really young. I can sort of remember them; I was three at the time. Kingsley has pictures of them around the house for us, and we look a lot like them. We finish the rest of our breakfast in a subdued silence.

Before I know it its time to go and get ready for the train. Kingsley helps Luka and me get our trunks down the steps, and loads them into the back of our muggle car. We're going to be driving to Kings Cross today, so that we can blend in with all the other muggles, not just show up in the middle of the platform.

Luka has his cat Sophocles' container on his lap. The black cat is lying down for the moment, with one orange eye open and staring at me. It could be because Dionysus my tawny barn owl is in his cage on my lap. Di gives a soft hoot of warning to the fur ball. You tell him Di.

When we pull up to the station, I feel my heart rate start to speed up. I can't believe that it's finally time! I don't think that I can contain my excitement now! Kingsley gets our trunks onto two trolleys, and places Sophocles and Dionysus on top of them. Luka and I follow Kingsley pushing our carts, and eyeing everything.

I don't know how we're going to be able to find platform 9 ¾ in all of this mess. There are hundreds of people running about, and folks are giving us odd looks because of Di. Finally we come to a stop at one of the concrete dividers between platforms nine and ten.

"Okay now, how you get on the platform is simple. You take your cart and run straight at the wall, you'll come out on the other side at the platform. Okay Luka you first." Kingsley instructs. I give my brother and encouraging smile, as he fidgets nervously.

"It's just magic." He mumbles under his breath, and he races through the barrier, and disappears. I feel a smile playing on my lips.

"Wicked!" I cry. Kingsley chuckles from behind me.

"All right, your turn Jamie. I'll be right behind you." Kingsley promises. I nod, and take a deep breath. I kick off, and shoot at the barrier, squeezing my eyes closed, as I come in contact with the wall. I don't crash though. I open my eyes again, and in front of me in a crowded platform full of witches and wizards, dropping kids off, and getting on the train.

I don't think that my grin could get any wider. "This is totally amazing! I wonder what magic the barrier is made up of?" Luka murmurs to my right. I roll my eyes at him, and laugh, when Kingsley comes through. He smiles at the two of us, and claps a hand down on both of our shoulders.

"Come now let's get you both squared away. The train will be leaving in a few minutes, and best be assured that you have a compartment to stay in." He replies. Kingsley helps us get the trunks up the train, and into an empty compartment. "Okay now. I want the two of you to have a great term. Send me letters to let me know how you're doing all right? I understand a little mischief, but I don't want to be getting letters every week from your head of house complaining okay?" He says. We both murmur our assent.

Kingsley gives us a sad smile, and pulls us to him in a tight loving hug. I wrap my arm around his shoulder, and squeeze him with all my might. I'm going to miss him despite everything. "One last thing, don't worry about which house you'll end up in. I'll love you no matter what. Luka, remember to relax. Jamie, try to stay out of trouble." Kingsley pleads. With that he turns and exits the train.

Luka and I exchange a look, and scramble over to the window, pulling it down. "Bye Kingsley! Love you!" I cry sticking my head out the window, waving my arm. He turns around and laughs, and brilliant smile lighting up his face.

"See ya Kingsley! We promise to write! I'll remind Jamie!" Luka calls after him. I turn and glare at my brother, punching his arm. He yelps, and rubs his arm shooting me cross looks as the train starts to pull away. I push up the window, and plop down into my seat across from him.

"Just let me say ow! That hurt Jamie! I was only telling him the truth. You'll forget to write to him the minute we arrive." Luka accuses, jutting out his lower lip and rubbing the sore spot. I roll my eyes at him and sigh.

"Come on Luka, you can't tell me that you're not excited about seeing Hogwarts! It's going to be brilliant. I'm sure of it!" I cry, turning my gaze out the window.

"Whatever Jamie, I'll start freaking out as soon as we arrive. Besides, we still have eight hours on the train until then." He tells me, and promptly pulls out a thick textbook from his bag. I groan, and collapse back on my seat. I love school and all but I'm not obsessed with learning as he is.

I pull out my wand and start idly shooting sparks out of it. Before I can open my mouth to complain to Luka, the compartment door slides open, and a pale thin-faced boy enters. Two burly boys flank him, and I instantly feel my caution rise. "This must be some year. Is it true that you two are Pendragons?" He demands.

Luka lowers his book, and analyzes the boy in front of us. "Our last names are yes. I'm Luka Pendragon and that's my sister Jamie Pendragon." Luka introduces us, yet doesn't offer the boy his hand. Good boy, I don't like the looks of this kid. A smile breaks out on the boy's face, and he smooths back his already slickened blond hair.

"The name's Malfoy. Draco Malfoy." He introduces, sticking his hand out for us to shake. Malfoy I've heard of him before. Kingsley always complains about what a rotten snake his father is. From the looks of it Draco isn't much better. My brother cautiously shakes his hand, and I ignore Draco all together.

"You know, there are all sorts of people walking around at Hogwarts, and I'd hate to see you two get mixed up with people below your own stature." He remarks smiling at the two of us. I instantly frown at him. Merlin, he's another one of those blood purist freaks. I don't think that I could stand that.

"Every magical person is good enough to become friends with its, just the personality that you have to look out for. Frankly, I don't like yours. I can't speak for my brother here, but I for one will never be your friend with that sort of attitude. And for you information, I'm a half blood." I state. Malfoy's charming smile reverts to a caustic sneer.

"See here. You don't want to be going and making enemies with me Pendragon. My father has friends in high places, I can make you life at Hogwarts miserable." He threatens. I jump to my feet, and pull my wand out of my pocket. I brandish it in front of me, and Luka is by my side in a second.

Gone is my brother's neutral look, and now it's replaced with cold fury. "Don't you dare threaten my sister Malfoy! She speaks for the two of us. Get going, we don't need the likes of you around here." Luka growls then thrusts his wand underneath Draco's chin.

He scowls at the two of us. "This isn't over. You'll see, you'll come around to our side eventually!" He calls after him. He pushes out of the compartment only to stop at the sight of a girl standing there. I groan mentally.

"What are you looking at freak?" He spits leaving the compartment finally. The girl scowls after him, and turns to our compartment. She steps inside, and closes the door behind her.

"I was wondering where the two of you were. Great speech by the way, I agree wholeheartedly. In fact, it was sort of like the one I just gave him a few minutes ago. I guess that great minds think alike." She says, clapping slowly. I roll my eyes and collapse back onto the seat.

"Hey Ariana!" Luka cries excitedly. I groan, and close my eyes forcefully. I don't need to watch my brother fawn all over Ariana Dumbledore. Just because she's the youngest Dumbledore, and her grandfather is the Headmaster, does not mean that she's the greatest person ever.

"Hello Luka! How was your summer after I last saw you?" She asks him politely.

"Great, Kingsley took us on vacation to the beach! We saw this giant turtle it was totally awesome. Then again I'm sure that your grandfather took you on some great adventures." Luka rambles, a light blush adorning his cheeks. I sigh, and shake my head at him.

Ariana is nice, but she won't give him the time of the day. I don't know why he likes her so much. "That's sounds like loads of fun Luka. My summer wasn't bad either. Grandfather was rather busy near the end, but he did manage to take me with him to the Puddlemere United v. Tutshill Tornados game. That was a real blast." Ariana replies.

I hope that she's done being cordial, and will leave, but unfortunately luck does not seem to be on my side today. "What about you Jamie? Was your summer fantastic?" She questions. I bite my lower lip, and mull over what to say.

"Was okay." I mumble. I lift my gaze to meet hers for a second. She's staring at me with that smile, and it makes me shift uneasily. Her brown eyes are soothing and cheerful; she never seems to stop smiling. I don't understand what makes her so happy all the time.

She pushes a strand of her golden hair out of her face, and sits down next to me. I shift a little farther down from her. I stare determinedly at my lap while Ariana and Luka chat for a few more minutes. Suddenly I feel someone slide right up next to me.

I can feel breath against my ear. "I know that you don't like me that much Jamie." Ariana whispers. "I'm going to change that though. We're going to be friends, mark my words. You're going to like me one of these days." She breathes. I spin my head around to retort, but she's already up, and at the compartment door.

"That's likely." I mutter. Luka glares at me from across the compartment.

"I don't know what's your problem. Ariana is a nice girl. She's never hurt anyone, and everyone likes her. You just have to give her a chance Jamie. Ariana isn't stuck up as most of the privileged kids that we know." Luka says pulling out his thick tome again. I moan, and mentally kick myself.

Why can't I ever act normal around that girl? As much as I hate to say it, Luka is probably right, but hey, a girl can have her hang-ups can't she? "Anything off the trolley dears?" The food cart witch asks us. I perk up immediately, and even Luka manages to shut his book.

We grin at each other, and pull out our galleons. Three minutes later we have an armful of treats, and we're set for the trip. I rip open a chocolate frog, and catch the creature, before it manages to make its escape. I bite of a foot and chew the chocolate, as my brother bites off the head of his.

I shudder as I watch the poor chocolate amphibian fake die over and over again. "Seriously that's disgusting. Why bite the head first, it's inhumane." I cry. Luka grins at me, and stuffs the rest of the frog into his mouth. I take another bite of mine and look down at the card that I've obtained.

I can't help but snicker at my find. "What is it?" Luka asks finally swallowing. He gets up and plops down next to me to see.

"It's rather ironic that the Pendragon twins have now obtained the Merlin card. I think that the universe is trying to tell us something." I muse. Luka groans and shoves his head into his hands.

"Is it seriously going to be like that all year? It's not like we've even done anything. It was our ancestors. We can't help it if we were related to Arthur now can we?" He cries, throwing his hands up into the air. I sigh knowing that it will take a while for the news to spread, and rumors to settle down.

My brother Luka and I are the remaining two members of the noble and proud Pendragon family dating way back to the time of Merlin, and King Arthur. People always seem to freak out when they find that out. The funny thing is that there are actual wizarding royal families out there, we just don't happen to be one of them.

After Merlin and Arthur we relinquished the throne and lived out our lives as advisors and commoners, until we're now the same as everyone else, just a tad more famous. I finish my frog with a sigh, and turn to the Bertie Botts Every Flavored Beans. I open the top, and Luka sticks his hand into it.

I don't know why my brother even bothers to eat them anymore; he always seems to have horrible luck with them. He pulls out a yellow colored one, and bites into it cautiously. Immediately his face screws up, and he spits out the candy. "What is it this time?" I question.

"Margarine. You'd think I would get something better after a while." He grumbles. I pick out a bean and pop it into my mouth. "Well what is it then?" He prompts.

"Chicken flavored, oh Merlin now I want actual food." I groan. Luka laughs, and returns to his seat across from me.

"Nothing I can do about that. We'll be there shortly." He replies. I close my eyes, and try to think about anything else besides the food. The compartment door slides open yet again, and I bite back my growl of aggravation.

"Hello there, have either of you seen a toad? A boy named Neville has lost one, and I have agreed to help him out." A girl's voice comes from the doorway. I open my eyes to see a bushy haired girl stand there, with front teeth that are slightly too large for her face.

She's already dressed in her robes, and her arms are crossed in front of her chest. "Nope sorry no toad here, only a few snakes and an extremely perky girl." I report. Luka flashes me an amused expression.

"What my dear sister is trying to say, is that we will keep our eyes open in case we happen to come across a toad. I'm sorry I didn't catch your name." Luka says, standing up and addressing the girl head on. This seems to shock her slightly, and I can't bite back the grin on my face.

"Hermione Granger, I'm a first year." She responds. Luka smiles at her, and shakes her hand.

"Luka Pendragon Hermione. I'll be sure to keep a look out, as will Jamie. We're first years as well, and I'll look forward to seeing you in class." He tells her. Hermione flushes slightly, and extracts her hand from his grip.

"I know about you two. Your family is extremely old and talented. It's a pleasure to meet you, but I've got to go find that toad. You should put your robes on as well, we're arriving shortly." She stammers. With that she turns and flees the compartment. I let out a snort of laughter as soon as the door closes behind her.

"Why do you insist on putting every other girl off guard? You're playing with them Luka. You're no more interested in a girl at the moment, then I am with a boy." I finish flatly. I do feel bad about him doing that to the girl. All she did was stick her head into the compartment, not ask for an heirloom of Merlin's.

Luka harrumphs, and plops down on his seat again. "I'm tired of people interrupting me. This whole trip I've only been able to get two paragraphs in, and I really wanted to get this book done, before we reached the castle." He grumbles. After that I wait out in the corridor as Luka changes.

As soon as he's done I change into my school uniform as well. I wasn't entirely thrilled with the whole wearing a skirt thing, but I guess that small sacrifices like that could be made to attend a school like Hogwarts. I let my brother back in, and we both pressed up close against the window.

I could see a lit up station coming in through the distance. Suddenly my nerves started acting up. "Luka…" I start but trail off. My brother turns his gaze to me, and his expression becomes worried.

"What's wrong Jamie?" Luka asks.

"What happens if we get put into separate houses? Will we still hang out? I don't want to lose you… you're my brother, my twin." I admit my worries softly. Luka smiles at me softly, and moves over next to me. He wraps his arm around me, and I burrow my face into his shoulder.

"Even if one of us is Slytherin and the other is Gryffindor, we'd still be best friends Jamie. Stupid house pride issues will never tear us apart. Besides, we knew that we'd probably be in different houses going into this." He tells me. I nod my head, and sigh.

"Okay, as long as we promise to still make some time for each other. Be warned though, neither of us are going to be put into Slytherin, we're just too impure for that." I giggle. Luka breaks out into a laugh as well. The train starts slowing down, and my nerves come back. Judging by the look of my brother, he's nervous as well.

Once the train stops, we take a deep breath and step onto the platform. All our trunks and animals will be transported to our rooms for us. Luka grabs my hand so that we can stay together in the sea of students that swarm the platform.

"Firs' Years over here! Firs' Years over here! Come on now hurry up!" A huge giant of a man bellows from the far side of the platform. Luka and I make our way over to him, and our mouths drop in astonishment. He's really a giant! The enormous man looks down and gives a smile at the two of us.

"Hello there Jamie Luka. Have a good trip?" He questions. I blink in shock. He knows who we are?

"You know us?" Luka manages to get out. Hagrid laughs, and smiles at us. I have a feeling that I'm going to like this man for some reason.

"'Course I know you two. You're rather famous 'round here." He replies. Great. "Come along now! No dawdlin'!" He cries. The group of first years clamor down the slope behind him, and after a few minutes of slipping and sliding in the dark, we come to the bank of a lake.

"Four to a boat now!" Hagrid calls. Luka and I push forward and climb into a boat after two boys. The lamplight gives me a quick look at their faces.

"Hello there." Luka says. The boys turn to face us. The one on the right has flaming red hair, and a long nose with freckles on his face. There's a dirt smudge on his nose, and his blue eyes stare at us in shock. The boy on the left has black hair that's laying in every direction, and circular glasses. Behind those glasses are brilliant jade green eyes.

"Hey I'm Ron. Ron Weasley. Wait… I know who you are!" The redheaded boy cries. I flinch slightly. Can't we catch a break?

"Um I'm Harry. Excuse Ron, he has a problem with meeting new people." The black haired boy tells us. I grin at that. Luka stiffens beside me.

"You're Harry Potter right?" He asks softly. Harry goes red at that, and mumbles something, nodding his head. "Sorry about that mate, I was just shocked is all. My name is Luka Pendragon." My brother says sticking his hand out for both boys to shake. Ron's eyes widen even further if possible.

"Jamie Pendragon this lug's sister." I introduce myself shaking their hands as well. Harry gives me a smile, and Ron still looks like he's been hit over the head with a club. That's when the boat starts moving, and we're skimming across the water, and we all fall silent.

A few minutes later the castle comes into view. Gasps and awes can be heard all across the lake. The castle is magnificent. No words come close to describing it. White spires stretch up into the sky, and each of the windows are lit up. Wow, I'm going to be living here for the school year!

"Duck yer heads!" Hagrid calls. I duck my head down low, as we come across the cliffs. The boats reach the shore, and we start our climb up the stairs to the castle.