Claire sat up; what was that noise that she heard? It was coming from outside her aunt's home in London. She stumbled out of bed and pushed on her glasses.
"Crap!" She shouted, stubbing her toe on a book. She looked down at it and saw that it was the one she had fallen asleep reading-Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. It had fallen off the bed.
Claire looked out the window. Aunt Mary needed to have the windows cleaned; she couldn't see two feet in front of her. She worked her hands into the window's ledge and pushed it up. She felt her mouth fall open. There were two boys in her aunt's garden, both tall and well built, a little stocky, both fuming, and both with bright, bright red hair.
"Good going, Fred, great work. Now we're lost as we'll ever be and-"
"Oh, do shut up, George! Lee said Ariating was easy. I just did what he told me to do, that's all. When we get back to Hogwarts, let's slip some Canary- Creams into his soup, eh?"
The other boy laughed. "That'll be good. He'll turn birdy right in the middle of lunch! Ha-ha! It'll be great!"
Meanwhile, Claire was about to faint. Was this really happening? She knew exactly who these boys were; Fred and George Weasley of Hogwarts School of Magic. They were going to trick their friend, Lee Jordan, into eating some of their homemade candies that turned you temporarily into a bird. Was this a dream? She didn't want to risk the opportunity, so she slid out through the window, and crept through the shadows towards the boys.
"Yes, well, he'll pay once we get back, if we ever do, that is. Wait a minute, what's that?" Claire stopped as Fred, or was it George, turned around, hearing her.
"Uh, I guess I better get started, then. Ariatus-Hogwarts!"
There was a flash of bluish white light, just before Claire ran and grabbed Fred by the back. He turned, horror-struck, but the feeling of falling backwards faster than a bullet cold fly swept them off their feet.
THUD!
Claire landed on her back, still gripping Fred's robes. She heard a few sounds of laughter, but they all stopped abruptly. She opened her eyes, now free from her glasses, and they focused on a good seventy people, more or less. They were all staring at her. They looked as if they'd been having a party of some sort.
She looked around her. There was a fireplace, roaring happily, behind her, and two stone, curving staircases were at the back of the room. There were chairs and tables and orbs and maps about the room. Her legs were resting on an ornate red and gold Oriental rug.
"Er, what've you taken back with you, Fred?" Asked a very pretty, very tall girl. Angelina!
Fred and George got their first good look at Claire. She was fifteen, and very pretty. Her hair was light brown and some-what long. Her eyes were blue and, at the moment, full of awe.
"I don't exactly know," gulped Fred, "but I think she's a Muggle." A few people gasped.
Claire found herself looking into familiar faces. Suddenly a girl with a pretty face and loads of full, fluffy hair made her way through the crowds. Claire opened her eyes wider as she realized it was Hermoine Granger.
"Hullo. I'm-"
"Hermoine. You're Hermoine Granger. I'm Claire, you're Hermoine." The crowd gasped, in unison. Even Hermoine seemed taken aback.
"How-how did you know my name?" She knelt down next to her, as if she was a confused child. Claire propped herself up.
"I know all of your names-well, most of them. This is the Gryffindor Common room, isn't it?" She saw Fred inch away from her out of the corner of her eye. "I know about most of you from the books, the Harry Potter books. I've read all four, so far."
A boy whom Claire did not know laughed. " Well, everyone's read those. My favorite was "Harry Potter: A Boy With A Dream"! A few of the other people laughed.
"No! No, oh, you all wouldn't know. They're Muggle books, you see. This woman, J.K Rowling, actually, writes this series, and it's about Harry. The entire Muggle world knows who he is! They all know who you are! But every one thinks that it's just a story, but its real! I knew it was real!" Some of the people looked uneasy.
"Ask me a question, any one. I know things that have happened to you that you don't even know! Oh my! It's really real! For the past four years of your lives, there have been four books. The Philosopher's Stone, The Prisoner of Azkaban, The Chamber of Secrets, the Goblet of Fire! They're all famous!"
"If you know all about us, then…er… who won the Quidditch Final last year?" Asked George.
"No one did; it was canceled because of the TriWizard tournament. But the year before you guys did by beating Slytherin, even though Hufflepuff beat you in the first match because of the dementors." Nearly everyone gasped, and a few people sat down. Everyone moved in a little closer to Claire.
"Get Dumbledore." Said Hermoine to two girls. "D'you know where his office is?" They nodded.
"You two are Parvati and Lavender, right?" Claire was smiling now. The two girls stopped, frozen.
"Yes, er, yes, we are." They looked like they wanted to say more, but left, running. Claire could hear them yelling, "Prof. McGonagall! Prof. McGonagall! Come quick! Come quick!"
When she turned her head back to the crowd, they were all sitting around her, beaming. She heard someone say "Let 'er onto the couch, she's got to be more comfortable there!" She felt herself being pulled by some ten people onto the large chair. People circled her.
"So do you know everything about us?"
"No, not everything, but-"
"Did you see what me and Seamus did last fall?"
"I might've but I-"
"Does everyone get a chapter or is it just as is?"
"Well not everyone gets a-"
"Nobody knows that I cheated on my Muggle Studies exam last year, do they?"
"Well, I'm sure they do now but no-"
Suddenly the door swung open. Parvati and Lavender were standing behind Professor McGonagall, who looked very urgent and alert. Claire smiled as she saw Professor Dumbledore enter casually, his eyes winking behind their half moon glasses. Her smile faded as a man with olive skin and black, slimy looking hair parted down the middle entered, looking at the common room with loathing and her with a hateful interest.
"Snape…" she whispered. "Er, hullo."
"Hullo. I understand that you know a certain few facts about us Wizards, or so Parvati and Lavender tell me." Dumbledore smiled, but McGonagall looked anxious, as if Claire might be a gold mine, or might be carrying a disease. Snape looked as if he was increasingly determining that she was carrying a disease. Claire quickly told her story about the books and the series and such. At the end, Dumbledore smiled even more.
"Then you must be happy to have run into Fred and George, I assume."
"Yes, very, Professor Dumbledore. It's almost as if I were dreaming."
"Then maybe you'd care to stay a while, then? See a little of Hogwarts and meet the people you've read about?"
Claire's heart leapt with joy. How terrific it would be! How amazing to meet the Fat Lady or Hagrid or… Malfoy. Oh! What she would say to Malfoy!
"Professor, perhaps it wouldn't be such a good idea to let a Muggle, of all people, to-" Claire's temper rose as she glared at Snape, trying to ruin her chances at the perfect holiday.
"Severus, my mind is made up. The child will stay for a week, more or less if she permits. Now, I reckon that you must be tired. You have a lot to think about. Good night." He smiled, and turned and left, followed closely by an arguing Snape. McGonagall stayed put, looking a tad white in the face.
"All right then. Off to bed, all of you." There was a cry from the crowds, all wanting to stay up and hear about their famous selves. "And, er, where would you like to sleep, Claire?"
"Oh! Er, with Hermoine and Lavender and Parvati, if you please. They are the girls I know most about, anyway."
"Allright, I'll have a four poster bed set up. Oh, and girls? I don't want you asking Claire any questions, if it's all right. Let her rest, and gossip tomorrow." She turned and left.
Hermoine, Lavender, and Parvati lead her up one staircase to their room, a little smaller than she had always imagined the boys' to be. She climbed in her bed, and smiled. Pleasant thoughts filled her head about what she would say tomorrow. She was drifting off to sleep when she heard a raspy, growling voice that scared her out of her wits utter-
"LEAVE THIS PLACE, MUGGLE, OR YOU'LL SOON FIND YOURSELF FACING MORE THAN YOU CAN HANDLE!"
She jumped out of her bed, and peered, shaking, into Hermoine's, wanting to see if she had heard it too. But Hermoine was asleep, and Claire was alone.
"Crap!" She shouted, stubbing her toe on a book. She looked down at it and saw that it was the one she had fallen asleep reading-Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. It had fallen off the bed.
Claire looked out the window. Aunt Mary needed to have the windows cleaned; she couldn't see two feet in front of her. She worked her hands into the window's ledge and pushed it up. She felt her mouth fall open. There were two boys in her aunt's garden, both tall and well built, a little stocky, both fuming, and both with bright, bright red hair.
"Good going, Fred, great work. Now we're lost as we'll ever be and-"
"Oh, do shut up, George! Lee said Ariating was easy. I just did what he told me to do, that's all. When we get back to Hogwarts, let's slip some Canary- Creams into his soup, eh?"
The other boy laughed. "That'll be good. He'll turn birdy right in the middle of lunch! Ha-ha! It'll be great!"
Meanwhile, Claire was about to faint. Was this really happening? She knew exactly who these boys were; Fred and George Weasley of Hogwarts School of Magic. They were going to trick their friend, Lee Jordan, into eating some of their homemade candies that turned you temporarily into a bird. Was this a dream? She didn't want to risk the opportunity, so she slid out through the window, and crept through the shadows towards the boys.
"Yes, well, he'll pay once we get back, if we ever do, that is. Wait a minute, what's that?" Claire stopped as Fred, or was it George, turned around, hearing her.
"Uh, I guess I better get started, then. Ariatus-Hogwarts!"
There was a flash of bluish white light, just before Claire ran and grabbed Fred by the back. He turned, horror-struck, but the feeling of falling backwards faster than a bullet cold fly swept them off their feet.
THUD!
Claire landed on her back, still gripping Fred's robes. She heard a few sounds of laughter, but they all stopped abruptly. She opened her eyes, now free from her glasses, and they focused on a good seventy people, more or less. They were all staring at her. They looked as if they'd been having a party of some sort.
She looked around her. There was a fireplace, roaring happily, behind her, and two stone, curving staircases were at the back of the room. There were chairs and tables and orbs and maps about the room. Her legs were resting on an ornate red and gold Oriental rug.
"Er, what've you taken back with you, Fred?" Asked a very pretty, very tall girl. Angelina!
Fred and George got their first good look at Claire. She was fifteen, and very pretty. Her hair was light brown and some-what long. Her eyes were blue and, at the moment, full of awe.
"I don't exactly know," gulped Fred, "but I think she's a Muggle." A few people gasped.
Claire found herself looking into familiar faces. Suddenly a girl with a pretty face and loads of full, fluffy hair made her way through the crowds. Claire opened her eyes wider as she realized it was Hermoine Granger.
"Hullo. I'm-"
"Hermoine. You're Hermoine Granger. I'm Claire, you're Hermoine." The crowd gasped, in unison. Even Hermoine seemed taken aback.
"How-how did you know my name?" She knelt down next to her, as if she was a confused child. Claire propped herself up.
"I know all of your names-well, most of them. This is the Gryffindor Common room, isn't it?" She saw Fred inch away from her out of the corner of her eye. "I know about most of you from the books, the Harry Potter books. I've read all four, so far."
A boy whom Claire did not know laughed. " Well, everyone's read those. My favorite was "Harry Potter: A Boy With A Dream"! A few of the other people laughed.
"No! No, oh, you all wouldn't know. They're Muggle books, you see. This woman, J.K Rowling, actually, writes this series, and it's about Harry. The entire Muggle world knows who he is! They all know who you are! But every one thinks that it's just a story, but its real! I knew it was real!" Some of the people looked uneasy.
"Ask me a question, any one. I know things that have happened to you that you don't even know! Oh my! It's really real! For the past four years of your lives, there have been four books. The Philosopher's Stone, The Prisoner of Azkaban, The Chamber of Secrets, the Goblet of Fire! They're all famous!"
"If you know all about us, then…er… who won the Quidditch Final last year?" Asked George.
"No one did; it was canceled because of the TriWizard tournament. But the year before you guys did by beating Slytherin, even though Hufflepuff beat you in the first match because of the dementors." Nearly everyone gasped, and a few people sat down. Everyone moved in a little closer to Claire.
"Get Dumbledore." Said Hermoine to two girls. "D'you know where his office is?" They nodded.
"You two are Parvati and Lavender, right?" Claire was smiling now. The two girls stopped, frozen.
"Yes, er, yes, we are." They looked like they wanted to say more, but left, running. Claire could hear them yelling, "Prof. McGonagall! Prof. McGonagall! Come quick! Come quick!"
When she turned her head back to the crowd, they were all sitting around her, beaming. She heard someone say "Let 'er onto the couch, she's got to be more comfortable there!" She felt herself being pulled by some ten people onto the large chair. People circled her.
"So do you know everything about us?"
"No, not everything, but-"
"Did you see what me and Seamus did last fall?"
"I might've but I-"
"Does everyone get a chapter or is it just as is?"
"Well not everyone gets a-"
"Nobody knows that I cheated on my Muggle Studies exam last year, do they?"
"Well, I'm sure they do now but no-"
Suddenly the door swung open. Parvati and Lavender were standing behind Professor McGonagall, who looked very urgent and alert. Claire smiled as she saw Professor Dumbledore enter casually, his eyes winking behind their half moon glasses. Her smile faded as a man with olive skin and black, slimy looking hair parted down the middle entered, looking at the common room with loathing and her with a hateful interest.
"Snape…" she whispered. "Er, hullo."
"Hullo. I understand that you know a certain few facts about us Wizards, or so Parvati and Lavender tell me." Dumbledore smiled, but McGonagall looked anxious, as if Claire might be a gold mine, or might be carrying a disease. Snape looked as if he was increasingly determining that she was carrying a disease. Claire quickly told her story about the books and the series and such. At the end, Dumbledore smiled even more.
"Then you must be happy to have run into Fred and George, I assume."
"Yes, very, Professor Dumbledore. It's almost as if I were dreaming."
"Then maybe you'd care to stay a while, then? See a little of Hogwarts and meet the people you've read about?"
Claire's heart leapt with joy. How terrific it would be! How amazing to meet the Fat Lady or Hagrid or… Malfoy. Oh! What she would say to Malfoy!
"Professor, perhaps it wouldn't be such a good idea to let a Muggle, of all people, to-" Claire's temper rose as she glared at Snape, trying to ruin her chances at the perfect holiday.
"Severus, my mind is made up. The child will stay for a week, more or less if she permits. Now, I reckon that you must be tired. You have a lot to think about. Good night." He smiled, and turned and left, followed closely by an arguing Snape. McGonagall stayed put, looking a tad white in the face.
"All right then. Off to bed, all of you." There was a cry from the crowds, all wanting to stay up and hear about their famous selves. "And, er, where would you like to sleep, Claire?"
"Oh! Er, with Hermoine and Lavender and Parvati, if you please. They are the girls I know most about, anyway."
"Allright, I'll have a four poster bed set up. Oh, and girls? I don't want you asking Claire any questions, if it's all right. Let her rest, and gossip tomorrow." She turned and left.
Hermoine, Lavender, and Parvati lead her up one staircase to their room, a little smaller than she had always imagined the boys' to be. She climbed in her bed, and smiled. Pleasant thoughts filled her head about what she would say tomorrow. She was drifting off to sleep when she heard a raspy, growling voice that scared her out of her wits utter-
"LEAVE THIS PLACE, MUGGLE, OR YOU'LL SOON FIND YOURSELF FACING MORE THAN YOU CAN HANDLE!"
She jumped out of her bed, and peered, shaking, into Hermoine's, wanting to see if she had heard it too. But Hermoine was asleep, and Claire was alone.