Chapter 1
The moonlight shone brightly through the curtains, illuminating the room in silvery light. At first glance everything appeared peaceful - until you peered closer and saw the occupant laying on the bed was wide awake.
Insomnia was becoming a common occurrence for Elena Gilbert it seemed. It began the night after the sacrifice ritual - understandable, as dying would do that to anyone - but as the summer wore on the brunette found sleep continued to be elusive.
She had a feeling why, of course. Stress over the lack of progress with Stefan, the odd things she'd found herself able to do recently, the lingering guilt over Jenna and John's deaths… combined it was a miracle she could even get a little sleep on good nights.
Not that anyone knew. She had perfected the art of putting on a good face after her parents accident, and through copious amounts of coffee she was able to hide the insomnia from the others.
The strange occurrences were harder to hide though. Eventually it got to the point Jeremy and Alaric wouldn't accept her lies or half truths.
It began when her frustration with the whole Stefan situation had reached its boiling point.
She had been standing in the kitchen and felt her frustration peak...and at that moment, all of the glasses they had shattered, covering the kitchen in tiny bits of glass.
Alaric and Jeremy had come running at the noise and found Elena standing there, tiny cuts over her body from the debris.
She'd done this before- she still had no idea how - and was quick to use her typical excuse.
"I just squeezed the glass too hard," she told them quickly.
After a glance at her hands- which Elena realized where not covered in blood like they should be - Alaric fixed her with a concerned yet stern look.
"Elena, what's going on?"
She opened her mouth - to do what, she wasn't sure - but Jeremy cut in.
"This isn't the first time. There have been other incidents; too many to be a coincidence."
There was no way she could lie her way out of this one.
"I don't know," she told them. "It started after the sacrifice and whenever I get too emotional things… happen."
Alaric frowned. "Why haven't you mentioned this? Bonnie would be willing to help you figure out why this is happening."
Because you guys have already gotten dragged into this entire thing because of me, she wants to say. But she doesn't.
"Go clean yourself up," Jeremy told her, eyes softening as he took in the barrage of minor cuts on her body that Elena was just now realizing stung like hell. "We can discuss this later."
When she came back a few hours later - she had no idea she'd had so many bits of glass in her body - Jeremy and Alaric had cleaned the kitchen and were sitting in the living room.
She took a seat on the sofa beside Jeremy.
"Is it okay if we let Bonnie know?" Alaric asked. "Of everyone she'd be the most likely to know what's going on."
As much as she didn't want to drag Bonnie into this more… she really did want to know exactly what was wrong with her. So she nodded.
A few hours later one of Elena's oldest best friends showed up, arms full of books.
Bonnie hugged her after setting the books on the coffee table and gave Jeremy a kiss on the cheek.
"I did some research and it sounds like magic," the dark haired witch said as the group began flipping through the books. "It must have been something to do with the sacrifice."
"But there's no magic in my family," Elena objected, brows furrowed.
"In the Gilbert's, no. But the Petrova doppelganger was created through magic, making it likely," Bonnie said. "I don't know for sure though. There's nothing in the grimoires about this, and we have no way of knowing what spell was used to create doppelgangers."
"You got further than I would have," Elena told her gratefully.
Bonnie had spent the rest of the evening teaching her some simple spells in the hopes that would lower the chance of future incidents.
Spell casting, Elena found out, was very tiring. She was hoping her wariness would let her get a decent nights sleep, but after a few hours of sleep, she found herself having the same dream - no, nightmare - about the sacrifice. And sleep fled away again.
Leading her to staring at her room as it was bathed in moonlight - a familiar site now.
With nothing else to do she pulled her diary out and began writing her thoughts in it.
Elena finally managed to drift off just as the sun was beginning to lighten the horizon. Only to be woken up a few seconds later by insistent tapping at her window.
Irritated, she rolled over to glare at whatever it was that had ruined her chance at some decent rest. And felt all of her tiredness vanish.
There, outside sitting on the windowsill with a very irritated expression, was an owl. The fact it was practically day out and it was still about wasn't the strangest thing about it. In its beak was a cream colored envelope. Which, when got closer to shoo the owl away, she realized was addressed to her.
Elena Marie Gilbert
First Upstairs Bedroom On The Right
2401 Floyd St., Mystic Falls, VA
United States of America
Puzzled, she opened the window. The owl flew inside and perched on the arm of her chair, giving her a look that clearly asked what took her so long.
I must be losing my mind, she thought with a shake of her head. The insomnia is finally getting to me.
The owl dropped the letter at her feet. Wary, she picked it up and turned it over.
It was sealed with red wax bearing some sort of coat of arms. The sigil was interesting: a large H surrounded by a lion, snake, badger, and eagle. Definitely nothing she'd come across before.
It was suspicious and she decided to bring it up to Alaric and Jeremy later. She set the letter down, looked at the time, and decided to wait a bit before getting in the shower.
The owl, however, was having none of that. It screeched angrily and jabbed at the letter with its beak.
"You want me to open it?" She asked, feeling slightly foolish for talking to an owl. It merely fixed her with a look and screeched again.
"Okay, okay," she said quickly, not wanting the screeching to wake up Jeremy and Alaric.
She bent down to pick up the letter when she heard the door to her and Jeremy's shared bathroom open.
"Elena? What's that noise?" Her brother asked, voice hoarse from sleep. Upon spotting the owl, however, he immediately woke up.
"Why is there an owl in your room?"
"It was delivering this to me," she said, shrugging, handing him the letter. "It's also very insistent I open it immediately."
"It looks harmless," Jeremy said. "But we should probably have Bonnie do some spells just to make sure."
She knew where his thoughts were going: it wouldn't be pass Klaus to have a witch enchant a seemingly harmless envelope addressed to Elena to make sure Stefan wasn't lying to him about her death. And Bonnie was the only one with the skills to check.
"Okay."
Her brother glanced at the owl. "What are we going to do about it?"
"I don't think it'll leave until I open the letter..." An idea popped in the young woman's head.
Rushing over the the shared bathroom, she quickly wrapped a towel around her lower arm to create a makeshift guard like she'd seen people do on TV.
She re-entered her room and approached the owl, offering it her covered forearm.
The owl eyed it and then leapt up onto it - the unexpected weight almost causing Elena to dislodge it if the creature hadn't dug its sharp claws into the towel to hang on for dear life.
"Sorry," she muttered to it.
To Jeremy, she added, "I can carry him downstairs like this and we can wait for Alaric to get up before calling Bonnie."
"Him?" The young man asked with amusement.
"Well, we can't keep calling it 'it' all the time," she pointed out.
The other brunette shook his head, an amused smile on his face, and headed back to his room...only to come practically running back a few seconds later.
"I got one too," was all he said.
Being mindful of the bird on her arm, Elena hurried after him, where sure enough an owl was outside the window.
Jeremy let it in and it proceeded to practically shove the letter in the other brunette's arms.
"What is with all the screeching?" Alaric asked, making the two teens jump and the owl on Elena's arm to screech in protest. He blinked and added, "Why is there an owl on your arm and another in the room?"
The two siblings shared a look before speaking in unison.
"We need to call Bonnie."
"There's nothing off about these that I can tell," the witch told them. "Except their arrival."
Not for the first time she glanced at the owl that was making itself home on Elena's brunette simply mouthed 'I don't know'.
"So they're safe to open?" Jeremy asked.
Bonnie nodded, handing the letters back to the siblings.
The owl left Elena's arm to sit on the back of the couch to allow the young woman to open the letter.
The letter was as official looking as the envelope and made of the same cream colored paper.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc. Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards) Dear Miss Gilbert, We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The Headmaster will be along shortly to explain further. Please find enclosed list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31. Yours sincerely, Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress
As soon as she got done reading the letter, a knock sounded at the door.
The group froze, looking at each other. Slowly Alaric got up, a stake in hand, and approached the door.
"Good morning," an unfamiliar accented voice said pleasantly. "Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts. I assume you are Mr and Miss Gilbert's guardian?"
Alaric just stood in the doorway, debating. Finally he moved aside, leaving the door open. A test, to make sure this Dumbledore guy was who he really said he was.
If the man found it odd, he made no comment as he stepped over the threshold.
Albus Dumbledore was dressed oddly, there was no other way to put it. Midnight blue robes dotted with silver like stars, high buckled boots...a very unusual combination. His face, however, was more normal. Long white hair and a matching beard, blue eyes and a slightly crooked nose from it being broken one too many times.
"Ah, so you are Jeremy and Elena Gilbert," he said. "I see your letters arrived safe and sound."
No one said a word. Albus Dumbledore walked over to Alaric's abandoned chair and sat. "I have a lot to explain it seems. Where would you like me to begin?"
It was Bonnie who broke the silence first. "Is there really a school for magic?"
"Yes. Many, in fact, including one here in America. Though I suspected you already knew that, Miss Bennett."
"How do you know who I am?" She asked, alarmed. Elena discreetly slid closer to the edge of the couch, ready to stand between her friend and the...wizard?
"You did receive a letter from Ilvermorny when you turned 11, correct?"
Bonnie shook her head, confusion written all over her face.
The old man frowned and muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like "they should have learned after the Barebone children". "You should have, though it's no matter. You can simply join your friends here at Hogwarts."
"About this Hogwarts - what is it?" Alaric interjected.
"A school for young witches and wizards in Scotland. Whenever a child with magic is born their name automatically goes into a registry at one of the five major wizarding schools. When the child turns 11, they receive a letter from the school closest to them. Though there are obviously some exceptions." The last part was directed at Elena and Jeremy.
She looked at her brother. "I know where mine came from but…"
"If you'll forgive me I did some research into the Gilbert family tree. Though it hasn't happened in about a century, some of your ancestors did attend Ilvermorny," Dumbledore told them. "For reasons unknown at the moment, they re-emerged suddenly in you two."
Yet another mystery, Elena thought. She remembered something Dumbledore had said suddenly. "You mentioned Ilvermorny, yet our letters mention Hogwarts- which you said was in Scotland somewhere."
"I had a long talk with the Headmaster at Ilvermorny concerning the...situation here and we agreed for everyone's safety- including your own Miss Gilbert- that you attend Hogwarts," Dumbledore replied. "Speaking of which, I'd like to talk to your guardian about some things," he added, rising from the chair and heading to the kitchen, obviously expecting Alaric to follow him.
With a look at the teens, Alaric followed, though it was clear to everyone gathered that he was just as confused as the rest of them, despite the wizard's explanation. The two adults spoke in low tones. Elena wished Caroline had been here - she would have been able to make out what they were saying.
"So…" Jeremy said, breaking the silence that followed.
Bonnie frowned. "I remember seeing an Ilvermorny mentioned in one of the grimoires, but I thought that it was nothing at the time. I wonder what else I'd dismissed in them that is actually important."
"How did they miss you? I mean, most of your family have been witches - if every magical child's name is recorded at birth, you should have received something by now," Elena asked. Her and Bonnie had done research after the teen had first discovered she had magic, and found out that magic ran deep through Bonnie's mother's side.
The curly haired teen shrugged. "Maybe they're not the best at keeping records?"
"Do you guys think this is legit?"
At Jeremy's question, the two girls glanced between each other, holding a silent conversation. Elena was going to trust Bonnie's judgement on this - as the only one with any real magic experience, she would be able to tell if this Dumbledore was legit or some trap.
"So far - considering there is a mention of both schools, briefly, in a few of the grimoires - I'd say it is," Bonnie finally said.
Jeremy looked at his sister. "Are you going to go?"
She looked at Bonnie, who nodded. "I am. It would be...interesting, to get to learn at an actual school for magic."
Well, that helped make the brunette's decision. "I think so," she told her brother. "You?"
He fell silent for a few seconds, debating. "Yeah, I'll give it a shot."
"Ah, excellent!" Dumbledore's voice said, causing the three to jump. He was standing in the entryway to the kitchen, beaming. Alaric came out from behind him to sit in the armchair. "I shall put your name's down and expect to see you on September 1st. I must be going, now. Mr. Saltzman, I hope to hear your answer soon."
With that, the wizard walked over to the door and stepped out. As the door shut, the group heard a faint pop. When they looked out the window, he was nowhere to be found.
Bonnie was in awe. "Teleportation," she breathed. "I didn't know it was possible!"
"That seems to be the theme today," Elena said.
"What did he want?" Jeremy asked Alaric.
"He wants me to teach a class about vampire hunting and defense. He said I can bring Damon and Caroline along, if I want to. Though he seemed under the impression Caroline would be coming, regardless."
"But she doesn't have magic, does she?" Jeremy asked. Both Elena and Bonnie shook their heads.
"Not that we know of," Bonnie answered. "I guess we'll find out."
"Are you going to accept?" Elena half hoped Alaric would - as selfish as it was, she wanted as many familiar people around her as possible. People who would understand, who had went through the same things she had.
"I told him I'd let him know by the end of the week," the man replied. "I'm going to talk it over with Damon and Caroline first."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than the front door opened, and the two vampires stepped inside. Well, Damon did, bursting in and immediately zeroing in on the group in the living room. Caroline was a bit more calm.
"Alright, what the fuck is this about some cosplaying grandpa wanting me to teach a class to a bunch of mini-Bennent's?" Damon said in lieu of greeting.
Caroline shared a look with Bonnie and Elena. "What Damon is trying to say, is why is some wizard deciding to take interest in Mystic Falls?"
"He's not interested in Mystic Falls, exactly," Alaric began. "He's a Headmaster at some magic school in Scotland, and was making sure Elena and Jeremy received their letters. He also extended an invite to Bonnie. And you know what he wants with us."
"Wait, what does he want with you and Damon?" Confusion crossed Caroline's face.
"He didn't ask you to help with a vampire hunting slash defense class?" Alaric asked with surprise and confusion. The blonde shook her head.
"The wizard - Dumb-something - said that he could detect a faint trace of magic in me, and that if I wanted I could join Hogwarts - though I wouldn't be anywhere near as successful as the rest of the student body, apparently," she explained. At the stunned looks on the others' faces, the blonde vampire shrugged. "I have no idea."
"Tell me you three aren't really buying into this bullshit," Damon directed to Bonnie and the Gilbert siblings.
"We already decided to go," Jeremy answered, immediately shifting so he would be able to stand between the two girls and the vampire, should the need arise.
No need. Because the owl Elena had completely forgotten about let out an angry screech, flapping its wings at the dark haired vampire.
She half turned to find it giving him the equivalent of the bird stink eye. Damon's mouth hung open, and the sight would have been comical - if the owl hadn't left it's perch on the back of the couch in favor of Elena's arm.
"That owl's taken a liking to you," Alaric observed.
"Well, in that case, I'm all in!" Caroline exclaimed, her mind obviously made up.
Alaric looked at Damon, while the teens looked at him.
"I'm seriously thinking about it," the hunter said. "You in?"
For a few seconds, Damon stared at them like they had completely lost their minds sometime between yesterday and now, and Elena knew he was going to refuse…
"I can't believe I'm thinking about it," he muttered. "It'll be boring as hell without you guys, anyway. And since something is clearly wrong with your brains, someone has to have some sense at this school."
Which was Damon-speak for "I'll miss you guys and be bored and alone".
A tiny smile crossed Alaric's face, and he reached into his pocket to pull out an envelope Dumbledore must have given him. He grabbed a pen and sheet of paper, scribbled something on it, and put it in the envelope.
The owl ducked and gave an affectionate peck at Elena's fingers before flying over to the man and grabbing the letter in his talons.
The brunette crossed the room and opened the window so it could fly back to Hogwarts.
"So what do we do now?"
He would never admit it in a thousand years, but Draco spent his entire summer terrified that at any moment he would be forced to pledge his loyalty to the Dark Lord, to follow in his family's footsteps as some of Lord Voldemort's most loyal followers. Especially with his dad now in Azkaban, it would be just like the dark wizard to recruit the blonde as a retribution.
So when his mother asked if he could come downstairs, he schooled his features into the trademark Malfoy arrogance and shoved his fear down as far as he could.
Draco followed his mother's voice to the parlour room. Thankfully, it was just the two of them.
"You called, mother?"
"Yes," Narcissa replied, featuring to the arm chair across from her.
Getting the message, Draco sat in it, making sure to look to any outsider like he was the epitome of aristocracy.
"It's just us."
At that, he let the trademark Malfoy look drop, and allowed himself to relax in the plush chair. The only person who could bring out this side - the real wizard underneath the facade - was his mother. She was the only one who wouldn't judge him for it.
"Is everything alright?"
Since the return of the Dark Lord, the Malfoy Manor had been frequented on occasion by various Death Eaters. For a moment, Draco's heart stopped. This was it. The moment he was forced to take the Mark.
Because his mask was down, the fear must be quite obvious, because Narcissa raised from the couch to put a comforting hand on her son's shoulder.
"I promise it has nothing to do with that," she assured him. "However, this is important. Technically, your father should be the one explaining this; given the… circumstances, that isn't possible, so the duty falls to me."
Now the blonde wizard was just confused.
"What do you know about Veelas?"
What? "Not much, except that they're able to enchant a man with their voice alone."
"Your grandmother was a Veela. She passed the genes onto your father, however they apparently skip a generation in males."
He might not have Granger's brains, but he was still able to connect the dots.
"So I'm a Veela."
"Part Veela, but yes. And according to what your father told me - that he heard from his mother - is that you'll be coming into your Veela heritage throughout this year."
Well, at least it would be easy for him to charm an appropriate pure blood witch his parents deemed worthy enough for him to marry...
"The way your father explained it, you will also eventually find your mate, so to speak." At his confused blink, Narcissa elaborated. "Like a soulmate. I don't know any specific details but apparently there will be one person you're immediately drawn to, stronger than anyone else."
Draco understood the concept of soulmates, alright - even if he personally found it to be a load of crock - and suddenly found his future thrown into question with this revelation. Part of the reason he never believed in soulmates was because for purebloods like him, they just didn't exist. Ever since he was little, it was drilled into him he would marry a good standing pureblood witch and produce heirs to keep the Malfoy bloodline alive, feelings be damned.
"This… mate… they'll be another pureblood, right?"
A sigh escaped his mother, a small one, but enough that the blonde sat up a tad nervously. Even around him, Narcissa kept up her own mask - a reflex from all her years married to his father. "Your father would want me to say that of course they will, and if not, then you're to ignore the pull and marry someone we choose. It's hard, but it is possible."
He sensed there was more to the story, but didn't press. It sounded like a sore subject for the older woman - something he honestly didn't think was even possible, unless it dealt with him following in his father's footsteps. "But?"
"I don't care who they are - be it a man or a woman. I just want you to be happy. I'll deal with your father - " the words, if it ever comes down to it, went unspoken, even if they both knew the Dark Lord was going to eventually release his followers currently in Azkaban; the only question was when " - you just focus on ensuring your own happiness."
The idea of falling for anyone like Granger, or Merlin forbid, a Muggle, was laughable, but Draco could tell his mother meant what she said. She would support whomever he ended up with, even though he doubted there was any concern his soulmate wouldn't be another pureblood.
Right?
He nodded, once, to let her know he received her message, and she gave him a small one back.
"You may go, Draco," his mother said, voice back to the cool, formal tone expected of anyone from a well respected pureblood family.
On the way back to his room, he found his head swimming with the new information he had learned. Now that he had time to reflect on it, it was an awful lot to take in, especially considering he knew next to nothing about Veela's.
And, even more traitorously, a part of him found itself not minding if this mysterious person wasn't pureblood - the very same part of him that he always kept locked deep, deep down inside him. A part that always whispered in the back of his mind that the way his father treated others was wrong, that Granger actually was very admirable, that the Dark Lord wasn't the savior Lucius wanted him to believe… that mudbloods perhaps weren't too bad after all.
Without even realizing it, the wizard passed his bedroom and went for the Malfoy family library, feeling an awful lot like Granger as he did so. Still, it would be beneficial to learn what he could about Veela's - after all, he technically was one, and there surely must be at least a book or two about them in the library.