Dancing with Magic


Author: Alej

Rating: PG

Summary: When a muggle gets involved in a Death Eater attack, her life is changed forever. This takes place during the summer between Harry's fourth and fifth year.

Ships: This is a SS/OFC fic, along with a little Sirius/OFC.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from the Harry Potter books. J.K. Rowling does. I do, however, own Consuela, Eliza, Collette, and Noa. Plus any other OC's I've forgotten.

Notes: Italics = thoughts of the characters Bold = Author's Notes

Sleeping Beauty

Alan Davidson
Consuela Montoya
Eric Reeves
Jodie Warren
Eliza Dursley
Susan Varado
......................etc.


Noa scanned the program for her niece's name. Where - ah - there it was! Her niece, Consuela, was performing the female lead in the Sleeping Beauty Ballet. The ballet had been changed slightly from the professional version, to accommodate the level of these performers. They were, after all, middle school children who had been attending London's most prestigious dance academy over the summer. They weren't pros at it yet, but they were on their way.
She looked around the auditorium. It had been years since she had performed on this very stage, back when she was the student still trying to juggle school, ballet, and t'ai chi all in one. Now, it had been long since she had graduated from high school. The drama of that era was over, and she was concentrating more on her ballet training. She was juggling teaching younger students the art, while at the same time trying to continue her more advanced training so that she could audition for a professional school.
Suddenly, she received an elbow into her arm. Scowling, she looked to the seat to her right to see a young boy with a sheepish look on his face. She immediately forgave him.
"I'm sorry, miss. Didn't mean to hit you there," he said apologetically.
"It's all right. My name's Noelle, but you can call me Noa." She said, offering her hand.
"I'm Harry. Nice to meet you."
"So, what's a boy your age doing at a ballet recital, of all things?" She joked.
"Well, my cousin is performing tonight, and my uncle dragged me here to watch."
"Oh, who's your cousin?" Noa opened the program again.
"Eliza Dursley. She's in the corpse." He confided as the lights dimmed and the curtains went up.
"That's corps, Harry. Don't pronounce the p or the s." She whispered back.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


As the curtains went down, the audience roared it's applause. Suddenly, they came back up, and the audience, as one, leapt to their feet and gave a standing ovation to the performers on the stage.
"Did you see the one who played the Sleeping Beauty? You know, the dark haired one in the lead? She was really good!" Harry shouted over the audience's clapping.
"That," Noa said satisfactorily. "Was my niece."
"But....that would mean you're Noelle Montoya!"
"How do you know?" she asked.
"Oh, when Eliza came home for the weekend last week, all she would talk about was how she was going to be just like Noa. That her teacher was the best ever. Etcetera, etcetera." he grinned.
"Well, tell your cousin she did well for me!" she said as Harry's uncle shouted at him to hurry. He waved bye before turning towards his family and heading out of the auditorium.
She turned and began to make her way backstage.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


"Absolutely splendid!" Petunia crooned.
"Amazing! You were the best out there!" Vernon exclaimed.
"Lovely." Dudley spat. The competition between the two cousins was notorious in the family. The only thing the two ever agreed upon was their equally low opinion of Harry.
"So, Harry, what did you think of my performance?" Eliza asked.
"Wonderful. By the way, you would never guess who I sat next to in the auditorium." he said.
"Who would want to sit next to the likes of you?" Dudley sneered.
"Alejandra Montoya." he announced.
"She's too good to sit next to the likes of you." Eliza decided.
"Fine then, I won't tell you what her opinion was of your performance." he shrugged.
"You wouldn't dare!" she hissed angrily.
"Actually, I thought it was splendid," came a familiar voice behind them. They all turned to see Noa standing there. Eliza's eyes were as big as saucers.
Noa smiled, winking at Harry. "By the way, has anyone seen my niece?"
Eliza nodded and pointed in the general direction of the girl's dressing room. It was only after Noa had turned to leave that she had mustered up the courage to ask for an autograph.
"What, I'm not even famous or anything yet, and people are already asking for autographs?" she laughed. "That must be a good sign." she said as she handed a pen and paper back to the thunderstruck Eliza.
It was a full two minutes before the poor girl could speak again. Evidently, Noa was her hero. It apparently didn't matter that Noa wasn't in the pro leagues yet. Or whatever it is when you're a professional ballet dancer. Harry thought. Besides, how was he supposed to know? He wasn't one for ballet. Much rather be at a Quidditch match.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


"Today's warmups will consist of the usual pliés, battements, relevés, and pirouettes, not necessarily in that order. First we have two demi-pliés, followed by one grandé plié, down for four, up by eight. All the way through fifth position and back.
Noa was in the London Ballet Academy (A/N - don't know if there is an actual London Ballet Academy, but if there is, this isn't it. The same goes for any other academies and/or companies mentioned throughout this fic.), working with the students at the Academy's summer dance program. Too bad I can't work with the advanced bunch, she mused. Big sigh.
"Good work, Jodie. Bend the elbows a little more, Consuela. Allison - you can plié better than that! Eliza - turnout! You need to work harder on your turnout. Find time at home to practice. Susan......"
After they finished their plies, they began working on their relevés. As she watched them, she noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. Mrs. Dursley, along with Dudley and Harry, had come in to watch the class for a while. One of Alej's' assistants (she had three) wandered over for a brief moment before turning back to the class.
Eventually, she began to instruct them on their pirouettes. They started on singles and worked their way up.
The students had been working on some fouetté turns when several strangers rushed in. They were wearing cloaks - cloaks?! - with masks on underneath their hoods. They were carrying sticks that looked like they had been carved for the specific purpose of holding them.
"Excuse me, but we are busy running a class here. Go play your silly pranks somewhere else." Noa's top assistant, Collette, said coldly.
Then, one of them raised his arm and shouted "Expelliarmus! and pointed his stick at her. Noa stared in horror as Collette went flying several feet.
Just as Noa finished helping Collette up, she noticed one of them grab Harry and drag him out the door, as the rest began to follow. She jumped up, grabbed her bag, and trailed behind them. Suddenly, the cloak people began to disappear. Noa ran up and grabbed Harry just before the one holding him disappeared. The others were already gone, so she rushed him to her car and jumped in, driving him to the dorms LBA had supplied her as fast as her car would go.
"Who - what - where those people? And why were they after you?" Noa gasped.
"I'll explain later." he said wearily. "But if you don't mind, I need you to take me somewhere. It's, um, a safe house where I can stay."
"All right, I'll take you there. But don't you think that we should go to the police first?"
"No! I mean, the police wouldn't believe anything that happened. Would you if someone came up to you and told you everything that had happened?"
"No, I guess not." Noa conceded. "How long a trip are we taking?"
"I don't know. By train, it's not very long at all, but by car...." he trailed off. "Also when we get to Hog...er, the safe house, you might have to stay a few days. Questioning, stuff like that. I'd pack a few bags if I were you. Quite a few, because you never know what might happen." he added.
So thirty minutes later, Noa had changed and packed enough clothes to last her two weeks. After shutting off all the lights and locking the door tight, they walked back to her car.
"So, where are we going?" Noa asked as she drove down the ramp of the dorm's parking garage.
"Have you a map somewhere in this car?" Harry asked.
"Glove compartment." Noa replied, focusing on the narrow turns.
".....You need to get on M1 and go north until you reach York. I'll let you know where to go from there." he said before folding the map up and putting it back in the glove compartment.
"Jeez, it's a four hour drive." she muttered. Noa forced a smile and said, "Ok, story time. What's the haps?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"So, wait, those guys really were wizards? And those sticks were wands?" Noa asked excitedly for about the ten kabillionth time.
"Yes." Harry said patiently, also for the tenth kabillionth time.
"Wow." she said. "So that explains why Collette flew and sparks shot out of their sti...uh, wands."
Harry just nodded.
Half an hour later, they reached their destination. They agreed to stop in a restaurant to eat before changing their route.
Harry studied the map for a few moments before turning to look at his owl in the back seat. They had stopped by his uncle's house long enough for him to sneak out with his belongings.
"Hedwig is like a carrier pigeon. She can take a message from me to anyone in the world. I'm going to send her to the safe house. We should probably find a place to rest up for a bit before someone can meet us." he said matter-of-factly.
They checked into a nearby hotel. Before they headed to their rooms, Harry let Hedwig out, attaching a piece of paper to her leg with a string. She flew off, a snowy white owl against the bright blue sky.
They had room 217, or rather, suite 217. It had two separate bedrooms, both with a large bed. There was also a small kitchen area and a large television with a couch that folded out to a bed. Harry took the smaller room, just because it was further from the door in case of an unexpected attack.
He opened a window in his room for Hedwig before suggesting that they both get some rest. Noa agreed while puzzling over how Hedwig would know which window to fly through. She eventually shrugged and chalked it off to some wizarding thing, before she entered her own room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Noa awoke to the sound of two people arguing in the room beyond hers. As she got up, she could hear snatches of the conversation.
"- should wake - now - dore - soon - possible." That had to be a woman's voice. As Noa walked across her room, the sounds became louder and she could hear them clearly.
"Noa deserves her rest." she heard Harry say stubbornly. "She's been through a lot in the past several hours."
"I agree, but we have no choice in the matter. I transfigured into my falcon form and flew here, you know. We have to leave before you-know-who and his followers trace the magic from my transfiguring."
Noa turned the last corner to see Harry facing off against a tall woman with short, graying hair. Suddenly, Harry grabbed his forehead. It was only then that Noa noticed the lightening bolt scar on his forehead.
"Your scar hurts? That means he's here." the lady said worriedly.
"Then I guess that means we should be going." Noa said wearily, too exhausted to ask how a scar on Harry's forehead could possibly forewarn him of danger. Then again, he did grab his forehead right before the Death Eaters attacked, she remembered. The woman just turned and nodded, unperturbed by Noa's sudden entrance.
"Harry, you show this woman to our car. Here are my keys. No - introductions will have to wait until later. Be sure to show her the map in the glove compartment so that she can figure where to go next. I'll turn the key in at the front desk." Noa closed the door behind her and rushed as fast as her exhausted body would carry her to the elevators.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


"My name is Rolanda Hooch. That's Rolanda to you and Madam Hooch to Harry." the lady said after they had traveled a good ways.
"I'm Noelle Montoya." Noa said warmly. "That's Noa to both you and Harry."
"So, what exactly happened?" Rolanda asked.
"Harry, would you like to tell her? I'd prefer to concentrate on my driving."
Harry explained to Madame Hooch exactly what had happened, from the night he had met Noa at the recital to the moment his teacher had arrived.
"Why didn't you both just fly in? We could have sent some house elves for your things."
"Well, we could have flown in, but Noa is a muggle. I couldn't just leave her there, especially now that they probably know who she is. They saw her face." he explained.
"You're a muggle?!" Rolanda said incredulously.
"Well, yeah. Is that a bad thing?" Noa asked timidly.
"It depends on how you look on it. For one thing, most muggles are looked down upon in wizarding society. But with your daring rescue you'll probably be looked on as a hero."
"Oh, that's good." Noa joked.
"On the other hand, you now have some very powerful enemies who already hated any one with the slightest trace of muggle blood in them." Rolanda pointed out.
"Oh, that's bad." Noa grimaced. "Well, I guess I'll just have to deal with it. Maybe you can teach me some defensive magic or whatever."
"My dear, when we say muggle, we mean non-magic people. Not just people who don't know magic, but who can't do magic. No matter what."
Noa's face fell. "Are you serious? That is so not fair!" she complained.
"Life is not fair, as you've just discovered. While we're traveling, we might as well let you know why those people were after him. You deserve to, now that they are your enemies, too."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


They finally pulled up to the huge gates at the entrance of Hogwarts. Noa paused in her driving to gape for a few moments before trudging on. When they finally reached the end of the driveway, they came into view of the castle that was Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
If Noa was surprised at the gates, she was stunned at the sight of Hogwarts. That's a real live castle! she thought excitedly.
They got their belongings out of the car and began to walk up to the entrance way when it suddenly backed up and drove itself into the forest beyond the school. Noa been about to run after it when Rolanda assured her it would be safe there. Not quite feeling secure about the whole issue, but not having much choice, she picked her bags back up and followed Madam Hooch into the castle.
They were greeted by a huge giant of a man in the entrance way. "Hello, Harry, how ya doin'? Madam Hooch, always a pleasure to see ya. Hi there, I'm Rebeus Hagrid, games keeper and Professor of the Care of Magical Creatures here at Hogwarts. I'll take yer stuff up to yer rooms. You three go on up and see Dumbledore. He's been anxious to see you since he 'eard the news." he added before picking up Noa's bag and strolling off to her rooms. Harry was instructed to leave his trunk and such in the hallway before going up to the Headmaster's office.
Suddenly, Noa noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. She stopped in her tracks as she stared at the paintings. As she watched, characters from each scene were jumping between frames to other paintings! Some were talking to portraits across the wall, and one of them was even talking animatedly with Harry! Wow....she thought.
"Amazing, isn't it? I imagine that Harry had the same reaction when he first saw them, too." Rolanda smiled as they stopped in front of a huge statue of a bird. Harry mentioned that it was a phoenix, and informed her that Dumbledore had a pet phoenix. Noa just stared at him. Rolanda muttered something about strawberry shortcake, when the stairs suddenly started moving. Harry jumped on one, beckoning for them to follow. Talking paintings, moving stairs, and pet phoenixes. What's next?
They entered through a huge door into some kind of office. A wall was covered in all kinds of paintings of old men. As Noa watched, one of them jumped up from the chair he had been posing in, and bowed, pointing towards the stair well.
"If you would please, Headmaster Dumbledore has been expecting you." he bowed again before sitting back in his chair, his smile freezing on his face.
They walked up the stairs to another large door. Rolanda went through, followed by Harry. Noa took a deep breath, and stepped through to the next room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


"I cannot say I agree with you, Cornelius! We must remove the Dementors from Azkaban at once, before and not after Voldemort recruits them as part of his army." Dumbledore calmly stated.
"The Dementors are the only reason the prisoners in Azkaban haven't yet escaped! Without them, we'll be losing them day and night!" Minister Cornelius Fudge shouted.
"We'll be losing prisoners a lot quicker than that when he recruits them. And then what chance do we stand against his army?" Professor Severus Snape said quietly. "And besides, you've already had an escapee." he pointed out.
"What you are proposing is impossible." Cornelius gritted his teeth.
"What the Headmaster and Severus are proposing is actually quite sensible, thank you." Rolanda sniffed as she walked in. Behind her followed Harry - Harry Potter? - and a short, dark-haired stranger.
What's this? Dumbledore didn't mention anything about inviting Harry Potter to such an important meeting. And who's the stranger? Severus wondered. The man puts his trust in too many people! The boy doesn't deserve to be at Hogwarts! He should be expelled immediately, just for the potential danger he puts Hogwarts in each year just by being there. Not to mention the danger already passed. Even if he did save the day.
 A few moments later, Hagrid had joined them and Harry had joined his godfather's side. The stranger had quietly taken a seat close to where she had been standing.
"Rebeus, Minerva, Severus, Arthur, Cornelius, Sirius, and Remus: I have a grave announcement to make." Dumbledore said quietly.
Whispers immediately filled the room, along with a few glances towards Harry and the stranger.
"This morning, Harry was attacked by a group of Death Eaters while he was out with his aunt, observing his cousin's dance lessons. This young lady also happened to be there when it happened, and rescued him before bringing him all the way here from London to ensure his safety."
The girl's dark complexion was now as pink as the words on the white shirt she was wearing. They read "London Ballet Academy" across it.
"My dear, I did not catch your name. Would you like to introduce yourself to us?" Arthur asked.
"My name is Noelle Montoya, but you can call me Noa." She rose to shake his hand, grinning. "Now it's your turn."
She had a slight accent. Probably Spanish, judging by her surname. Severus mused.
"My name is Arthur Weasely, Head of the Department of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts. If you ever find a muggle item that is behaving out of character, please feel free to owl us anytime. We'll fix it free of charge for you. It's the least we can do to thank you." He then proceeded to hand her his business card. It had his name on it, along with his title below it, and in smaller letters below that it said "Ministry of Magic". They all kept swirling around in golden spirals, never stopping for longer than ten seconds.
A tall, regal woman then stood up and held out her hands warmly. "I'm Minerva McGonagall, Transfigurations Professor." She clasped Noa's hands. "We are most grateful of your brave rescue of one of our dearest students."
Dearest? Ha! Severus thought.
"Thank you." Noa said graciously. A man dressed in slightly tattered clothing to her right stood up and offered his hand. Shaking her hand happily, he said, "Remus Lupin. Most honored to meet the savior of one of my best students."
"Cornelius Fudge." the Minister cut in. "Minister of Magic. You and Potter both need to report this incident right away." he nodded curtly before taking the chance to exit the room.
"Severus Snape, Potions Master." Severus sneered before sitting down.
Ouch. Noa thought.
"I am Sirius Black." Harry's godfather announced.
Noa's eyes widened. "The Sirius Black?" she asked.
"Yes, but I've been acquitted. I was framed." he explained.
"Wow, that's harsh. At least you're free now." she said sympathetically.
"And I get to meet you." he flashed her his most charming smile. Or, at least he hoped it was his most charming smile.
"My name is Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts." she turned to the grand fatherly wizard. "It's a pleasant surprise meeting you, my dear. I'm ashamed to say that I was stunned when I realized that you were a muggle and not the experienced wizard I had expected." he said, eyes twinkling.
A few gasps were heard in the room, and once again the room was filled with whispers and furtive glances.
A muggle?! Of all people, a MUGGLE?!?!? Severus was outraged.
"I hope you will take me up on an offer to stay at Hogwarts a few weeks, until this situation is resolved." he added.
"I don't know, I don't want to intrude....." she hesitated.
"My dear, I promise that you are not intruding on anything. The official school year doesn't start for another week and a half, and full staff hasn't even arrived. Of course, if you want to get back to continuing your dance lessons, I quite understand."
Noa stared at him. "Lessons? I was the one teaching the class. But it was our last week, and probably has been closed now." she sighed.
"You're a teacher?" Rolanda looked startled. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Probably because you didn't ask." Noa said pointedly.
"So it is agreed then? You will stay for the next few weeks." Dumbledore confirmed. But before Noa could open her mouth again, the door suddenly burst open, and a familiar woman in muggle clothes burst in.
"Dumbledore! You have to help me!" she gasped. "Death Eaters attacked the school I work at, and - oh." she stared.
"Collette? What are you doing here?" Noa cried.
"Um, Noa? There are a few things I neglected to tell you throughout the course of our friendship." she winced.
"Obviously." Noa joked.
"Yes, well, before you two talk, we need to return to the matter at hand." Dumbledore cut in. "Most of you know Collette Devereux. For those of you who don't, introductions can wait. As for now, I have another important announcement to make." he rose from his seat.
"We all must stand and take a vow. For this day was foretold long ago, just as the future of Salazar's heir was foretold."
More whispers commenced throughout the room, and this time the staring was aimed at the Headmaster.
"Yes, all of us were meant to be here, even Harry and Noelle. We must do this so that none of us can abandon one another." Suddenly, everyone stood, and the chairs and tables were pushed to the walls by some invisible force. The headmaster gestured for each person to clasp hands with the person next to him, until they all formed a circle. Dumbledore began to chant, and eventually everyone joined in. Even Noa, who had no idea what the words meant.
Suddenly, a blue light began to shine in the hands of each person. As the lights got brighter, they began to stretch towards the center, until the lights from each pair of hands were connected. The lines then grew brighter, until Noa thought she couldn't look anymore. Then, just as she was about to tear her eyes away from the spectacle, it faded away.
Everyone just stood there, still holding hands, for a few moments. Then, Dumbledore clapped his hands together loudly, startling everyone out of their deep reverie.
"Hagrid, please escort Harry and Arthur to the nearest floo exit. Harry will be staying with the Weasleys over the next two weeks, until the school term starts again." Harry's face brightened at the prospect of spending time at The Burrow.
"Rolanda, since you two are already acquainted, would you please escort Noelle to her chambers. I'm sure that she is quite exhausted from today's events, and would like some rest before dinner. As for the rest of you, don't forget that full staff returns in two days. Also, one more thing: we are all connected now. When one of us is hurt, or in possible danger, we all must make an effort to help that one, no matter how week he or she is, or how much we do or don't like them." Dumbledore shot a meaningful look at Severus and Sirius. They both shot vicious faces at the other before returning their attention to Dumbledore. "Now, you are all dismissed."
"So, the staff is having their annual Quidditch match next week. Are you going to watch?" Rolanda asked hopefully.
"Next week? I don't know; I have auditions for a professional ballet school next week. It's a professional school I've been training all my life to get into. I might be in London all week. Besides, what's Quidditch anyway?"
"You mean Harry hasn't told you yet?" Rolanda's eyebrows shot up.
"I now know enough about the wizarding world to make my head spin, not to mention seen enough, but it's not a word in my vocabulary." Noa confided.
"Well, its....it's hard to explain. You have to see it to understand it." Rolanda explained.
"Kind of like ballet." Noa smiled.
"I suppose so, although ballet isn't exactly a word in my vocabulary, either." she admitted.
Noa looked at her incredulously. "You don't know what ballet is?"
"I'm not used to the muggle world completely. I know enough to survive, but just enough. I don't know about things such as ballet. I've heard of other terms, such as a computer and so forth, but I don't know what they all mean."
"Someday, I'll show you. Which reminds me, is there a room in this school with a mirror running the length of it? Since it's only a few days away until auditions, I want to practice my routine."
"Sure, there's a training room in the dungeons. Back when the dueling club was still active, the professor who was running it insisted on a mirror, so that the students could look at themselves and fix their mistakes."
"Same kind of reasoning for ballet, or any other form of dance. Smart thinking." Noa replied.
"Yes, well, the only smart thinking he did all year. The rest of the year he only used that mirror for practicing his smile." Rolanda harrumphed. "Ah, here we are."
They had arrived at a painting of a young woman in a beautiful blue dress that obviously dated back to medieval times.
"Noa, this is Céline. She's the guardian to your room. All you have to say is the password, which currently is Honeydukes. Also name of the best candy store in the world." she added. When she mentioned the password, the door had automatically swung open. "You can change your password as you see fit. Don't tell anyone else the password. Dinner will be served at seven o'clock tonight. You have three hours of free time until then. Any questions?"
Noa shook her head no.
"Good. I'll see you in the Great Hall at seven, then." Rolanda turned and walked quickly to her own chambers.
Noa turned and walked through the hallway to the door that led to her sitting room. As she opened it, she gasped in wonder. This room was magnificent, compared to the room she had had in the dorms at LBA. There was a fire crackling comfortably in a fireplace. Beyond it, there was a tall window, complete with white cushions and pillows for the window seat. There was a couch in front of the fireplace to match, and a few chairs scattered in between. Turning, she saw a round table with chairs on either end. It was then that she noticed another door beyond it. Crossing the large sitting room, she walked through the doorway and found her bedroom. There was a bed, a dresser, and a night stand on either side of the bed. Walking across the room to another door, she opened it to find a spacious bathroom. There was a large claw-footed tub trimmed on gold, and the shower was just beyond it. There was also a large vanity table complete with a mirror and chair. Noa turned back to the bedroom, and immediately noticed a door she had previously missed. When she opened it, she found a large walk-in closet. Delighted, she realized all her clothes had been hung up neatly, and her pointe shoes and other dance equipment were stored on a shelf above it.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a loud knocking. Who could that be? she wondered. She walked all the way back to the picture door, to see Collette standing nervously outside.
"Well, you gonna come in or you gonna just stand there?" Noa said, amused.
Relieved, Collette walked through the door to the sitting room, plopping down on the couch. Noa gasped when she got a little dirt on it, but it immediately disappeared and the couch was perfectly white again.
"All furniture is Unstainable." Collette informed her.
"So, what's going on?" Noa got right to the point.
"Well, ever since I was little, I've been taking ballet, tap, and jazz. So when I was eleven and got the traditional letter of acceptance to Hogwarts - without ever applying in the first place - I was disappointed. See, by then I'd already decided I was going to be a professional dancer, although it wasn't until I was fifteen that I decided I was going to major in jazz. So I came here, but it was really hard keeping up with my training. My parents spoke to Dumbledore about it, and he created a training room just for me, so that I could practice my dance in, without being interrupted. He also found a personal trainer for me who also knew about the wizarding world, and I worked every day for a few hours on my dancing. It went towards my recreational credits, instead of learning to fly and control a broom like all other Hogwarts students do. Which is my main problem with being a witch - I can't fly." she admitted.
"Why didn't you tell me about this before?" Noa asked.
"Would you have believed me if I had walked up to you and said, 'Hey, Noa. Guess what? I'm a witch!'"
"Point taken." Noa conceded.
"Hey, you still haven't told me your side of the story." Collette reminded her.
"Ok, here goes...." and Noa proceeded to tell her everything, from the moment she had run out of the classroom until Collette had burst into Dumbledore's sitting room.
"Wow! So, you're a muggle? No hidden tricks up your sleeve?" Collette grinned.
"Nope, sorry." Noa said, distracted. "Hey, if this watch is right, we're ten minutes late and I have no idea where the Great Hall is."
"Never fear, 'cause I do. Follow me." Collette said cheerfully.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Perhaps we should send someone to check on the newcomers. Minerva was fretting when the two burst in, laughing.
Sorry we're so late. Collette gasped before sitting down. They were all sitting at one of the student tables so that they could face each other.
Jeez, for someone who's supposed to be an accomplished dancer, you're sure out of shape. Noa joked.
Hey, just because I can grandé battement better than you can....
You wish! The other members of the table stared in bewilderment.
What are grandé battements? Sirius asked politely.
But before anyone could say anything, Dumbledore cut in. Collette, are you still planning on taking on a dance career?
Yes. Speaking of which, both Noa and I have auditions for different academies next week. Collette replied.
But I thought you taught dance. Minerva said, confused.
Oh, we do. Noa explained. It was just for a summer dance program. We're auditioning for professional schools, so that we can become professional dancers.
Ah, I see. And you two are both doing, what was it, ballet? Rolanda asked.
No, Noa is. I'm going into jazz dance.
What's jazz dance? Remus wanted to know.
It's similar to hip-hop. Noa explained.
At their confused looks, Collette said hastily, I'll show you sometime. They all nodded before Rolanda changed the subject.
Are you all ready for next week's Quidditch match? Suddenly, the room burst into a loud chorus of arguments over who wanted what position.
I'm a Beater, and that's final! Severus growled. If I were you, I'd be more worried about who's going to referee. The room broke into fresh argument.
Hey, did you bring your stuff? Collette asked quietly.
What, my dance stuff? A puzzled Noa replied.
Well, yes, but I also meant your sparring stuff. Collette muttered. The rest of the room was still arguing over the referee problem.
All except for one.
Dumbledore leaned over to whisper in Collette's ear. The situation in the Forbidden Forest is getting out of hand. Tonight, I want to put you on forest patrol so that you can see for yourself how bad it is. Would you like for me to send someone with you?
No, Noa knows a few tricks, so I'll take her with me. Besides, this way she gets an idea of what kind of enemies there are and how to defend herself against them.
But Noa is a muggle - she can't perform magic! Dumbledore argued.
Yeah, but she's no ordinary muggle. She's known t'ai chi as long as she's known ballet. All her life. It runs in the family, I guess, because her brother and sister know it, too. Collette explained.
Well then, be careful. he warned.
I will. Collette promised before getting up and stretching. She made a big show of yawning before elbowing Noa. I'm exhausted. I'm going to call it a day.
Uh, me too. Good night, guys. Thanks again, Dumbledore! Noa said before hurrying out of the Great Hall.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Severus Snape stared at the two suspiciously. He knew Collette was all right, as far as safety measures went. Although he didn't now the full extent of her abilities, he did know that she had lent a helping hand or two when the school had needed it. That was enough to earn his trust, albeit grudgingly. Besides, Dumbledore trusted her. Bonus points for her side.
But this new one, this....muggle....was as much use to the school as Neville Longbottom, a cauldron, and ingredients for a potion without instructions. She couldn't do anything for the school, except perhaps put it in more danger. She's probably be the end of it. Why, the students were probably a bigger help towards the school than she was.
Coming from him, that was saying a lot.
He watched them as they left the Hall, eyes narrowing when they turned right.
The bed chambers were to the left.
Excuse me. he muttered as he rose from the table and left in the general direction that the newcomers had gone.
Remus and I are going to Hogsmeade for a bit, anyone need anything? Sirius received quite a list in return. Grumbling that they were owed a huge favor, they walked out of the room and disappeared from sight.
Rolanda announced that she was going to the Quidditch field to make sure everything was as it should be. That left Dumbledore and Minerva.
Care for some wizard's chess?
Only if you promise not to win this time. Minerva admonished.
No promises. he chuckled.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

So, where are we going?
You remember that room I mentioned earlier that I used to practice in? Noa nodded. Well, I'm going to show you that room first. Then we're taking a tour in the Forbidden Forest. Collette replied.
But I thought it was forbidden. Noa said slyly.
It is. But I've got permission from the Headmaster himself.... Collette replied.
What's the point of this field trip?
You're used to sparring against humans, right? Well, we have different enemies here. Lots of them. You need to get used to sparring against them, too. Plus, we can get that stuff out of your trunk. Collette said, turning down a hall to the right. They were now in the dungeons.
Cool. So where's this hidden training room?
Collette scrutinized the wall. Suddenly, she pushed on a brick, and part of the wall disappeared, making a doorway. Come on. she said.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Severus followed them as far as the dungeons, almost losing them once or twice in the process. Now, where can they have gone this time? he wondered.
Suddenly, he heard feminine voices up ahead. He hurried on noiselessly, stopping in a corner.
Cool. So where's this hidden training room? That had to be Noa.
Wait. What hidden training room?
Suddenly, he heard Collette say Come on. He risked a look just in time to see Noa walk through an opening in the brick wall that he had never realized was there before. He started towards it, but the bricks materialized again, and he didn't know how to make them disappear again.
He swore softly under his breath before turning and storming back down the hall.