A/N: Hello to any and all who take the time to check this out! Thanks! It's greatly appreciated, as always. Before we get on with the story, I feel I owe a bit of an explanation to anyone who might have read my A New Power series. Anyone who has not, please feel free to skip on ahead to the story! This part will likely not interest you… heck it's not likely to interest anyone really, but I feel compelled to put it in regardless.

I'll admit when I finished my last tale, The Promise, earlier this year I fully intended to stop writing for a good long while and I certainly never planned on any sort of sequel or continuation of the A New Power series in any way. I had planned on The Promise to wrap up the series, and wrap it up it did.

There were dozens of possibilities for continuing the series spinning in my head, but I always firmly shot them down with what amounted to the mental equivalent of heat seeking missiles. I had been working in the same universe, with the same characters and a horribly twisted plot for far too long and I was fully and completely done. And while I was sad to say goodbye, I was also happy to be done and content in the knowledge that if I ever chose to do something else, it would be something new and different.

But distance, as they say, makes the heart grow fonder and so for the past couple of months I've been looking through the old files where I kept my work on ANP, remembering plotlines that died painful deaths and never saw the light of day to the file containing what I always called my Ideas of Utter and Complete Stupidity, a Word document that NO ONE will ever be allowed to read. But as I read through everything I had, I realized I wanted to do something else. Definitely not a direct sequel continuing the story, but something. I liked the ending I had in The Promise and wanted it to stay as it was. So, what to do… what to do?

Well, what comes next is what came from the brainstorming session that followed my choice to write something new that day. It isn't a sequel really, more of a spin off. It's set in the same timeline, but it is a different story with different characters. There will be elements of A New Power sprinkled throughout, but I am going to ensure that it will not be necessary to read even a single chapter of ANP to fully understand the happenings in this.

Also, to anyone who has read A New Power, this story will be written rather differently. It is not the war story that ANP sometimes was, nor will there be any time travel. It is really a story about making choices and the consequences of those choices, a theme which has been weighing on my mind recently and I figured it would work well in this instance.

Thanks again for checking in and particularly to anyone who actually read that wall of text. Blessed Be. And now, on with the story!

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The greatest magical war to have ever raged was over. The Ministry of Magic was victorious over the most powerful army of Dark wizards ever to be assembled. Led primarily by Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, the forces of the Ministry and the Order of the Phoenix wiped the forces of darkness from existence. The years that followed that victory should have been peaceful. It should have been a new era of peace.

It wasn't.

Fifteen years after the end of the war, a fatal accident alerted the Muggle world to the existence of magic. At the start, it seemed as though a new time of co-existence between Magical and Muggle would be possible. But the magical secret had been kept for a reason. Over the next decade, Magical-Muggle relations continued to deteriorate. Muggles feared the power of Magicals, worried that they would see the rest of the world as theirs for the taking.

This eventually led to a war that proved devastating to the Muggle world. The Muggles could not penetrate the hidden places controlled by Magicals, but many wizards lived among Muggles. Thousands of wizards were caught and killed and the Magical world responded in kind. When it at last became obvious that the Magicals could not be defeated by conventional means, the Muggles unleashed their nuclear weapons.

The Muggle world was all but destroyed yet the Magical world, which proved to be immune to the devastating weapons, was untouched. This brought about the end of the war and in the five hundred years since that time, the general knowledge of magic has been erased from the minds of the few hundred thousand Muggle survivors.

Five hundred years have passed since then and in that time Magicals secretly helped the Muggles rebuild their world, but only to the point that they were before the war. Magic is once again a secret, Magicals and Muggles live as they once did, in plain sight of one another and yet the Muggles remain ignorant of the existence of magic.

Leeds, England. August 23rd, 2521,

The small neighborhood in Leeds was very quiet so late in the evening. Everyone had already turned in for the night leaving the streets empty and dark. This didn't bother the only person who appeared to have decided to take a stroll late that Thursday night. The woman was old and wearing a bright red cloak. Her long gray hair was tied up in a neat bun in the back of her head. This woman's name was Harmony Phoebus. She strode with purpose down the street, her eyes which looked as alert and aware as someone less than half her age darted from dark house to dark house, as though she expected to be attacked at any moment.

She was quite alone, however, except for a very pretty young woman who appeared so suddenly that one might think she just popped into existence. She had dark brown eyes and long, dark curly hair. The young woman turned and kept pace with the older woman.

"What happened?" the young woman demanded in angry tones. "What went wrong?"

"We put our faith in the wrong person," said Phoebus firmly.

"We put our faith in the only person we could," the brunette replied. "What else could we have done?"

"We should have prepared her," Phoebe countered. "She wasn't ready for that kind of power and she was consumed by it. He corrupted her..."

"It was her choice, not yours," the brunette shot back. "We agreed, no matter their decisions, we wouldn't interfere. We may have wanted her to abandon her birthright or at least use that power for good, but in the end the choice isn't ours."

"You weren't there!" Phoebus roared. "She would've destroyed us all if given the chance!"

"And what do you think her daughter will do when she learns the truth?"

"Scarlett will never know the truth," said Phoebus firmly. "This, all of this... it's in Scarlett's hands now. I'm not going to let her find out what happened... and I'm not going to expose her to the threat she'll face until she's ready. Alexandra was far too young when I told her. She wasn't ready... she didn't understand."

"He'll come for her," the brunette said grimly. "He'll come for her and you won't be able to stop him. He knows about Alexandra and he'll be prepared for Scarlett now. She's just a child! You're going to leave her unprotected if she doesn't know what she is! What she'll grow to be... the power inside her..."

"The power inside her can't come out unless we let it. No one else can find that damned place but me. Even he can't get there."

"Mistakes were made," the brunette said sharply, grabbing Phoebus's arm and forcing her to stop in the middle the street. "We both made mistakes with Alexandra and it cost her her life."

"We're not going to make those mistakes with Scarlett," Phoebus began, but the brunette cut her off.

"No, you're going to make all new ones!" she shouted furiously. "You... if you're set on doing this, you know I can't stop you... but I won't help you. If you're intent on lying to her, on hiding what happened from her... you do so on your own. I won't come back again."

"That might be for the best," said Phoebus softly. "I've got to do this my way this time... I have to." The brunette looked to be on the verge of tears, but she nodded.

"Very well," she said sadly. "But this is wrong... and you'll pay dearly for it."

"Then it's my price to pay," said Phoebus resolutely.

"It's just too bad you're asking a little girl to share the cost," said the brunette just as firmly. Without another word the brunette faded away, like a spirit vanishing into the Afterlife.

"I'm sorry, my friend, but this is the only way," said Phoebus softly. She stopped outside of Number 9231, Alta Street and watched the small family inside their sitting room. The husband sat in an armchair speaking to his wife who held a small child, the same child Phoebus herself had given to them mere hours before. The same child who would one day hold the fate of everything they all held dear in her hands.

"One day, Scarlett," Phoebus whispered. "One day you'll understand..."

-.-

This is were our story begins, nine years later, with that very same little girl's first day at the most prestigious school of magic in the world; Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Scarlett Moreau grew up an orphan, living with a small Magical family in Leeds who had adopted her after her parents' deaths when she was only two.

Scarlett knows only that she is loved, that she is cared for, and that she has a place at Hogwarts. What she doesn't know is that she is special… special to someone who seeks to bring about change for both Magical and Muggle worlds alike. But for now, she is just an eleven year old girl, scrambling around her bedroom, hurriedly tossing the last of her school books into her trunk…

-.-

The Choices We Make: The Orbstone

Chapter One: Destinies

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Scarlett Moreau paused as she rushed around her room in the early morning hours of the first day of September packing everything she would need to go to her new school; a magical school called Hogwarts, and examined herself in the full body mirror on her wardrobe door. Scarlett was rather small for her age. She had sparkling brown eyes and long chestnut hair that fell in loose curls down to her waist.

Moving away from the mirror, she scooped up a stack of books she intended to leave behind and her eyes fell on an old leather-bound photograph album lying on her bed. The ragged book held mostly pictures of herself and her parents, but in the very back of the book she kept what might be the most important photo she possessed. It was the only picture of her mother and father that she had. It, much like the book, was ripped and torn but she had repaired it with Spell-o-Tape and secured it safely in the album.

She had concealed it from her parents, had never mentioned that she had the picture. She felt, perhaps, that her family might think her unhappy and that she wished she still lived with her birth parents. This was, of course, untrue. Scarlett had never once wished for her birth parents; she called them this because the man and woman who had raised her were as much her real parents as the couple who had conceived her. She loved them both very much and knew they felt the same.

Jonathon and Sara Hobbard had been unable to conceive a child, a fact which devastated the young couple. When their close friends, Alexandra and Michael Moreau had been killed in a terrible accident involving their work on new and experimental spells and potions, Sara and Jonathon had happily adopted Scarlett and raised her as their own. They had given Scarlett so much, been so good to her that she didn't want them to think she would rather be with her birth parents, so she very rarely mentioned them.

Now, though, she found herself thinking more about them than she had in years past… especially now that she was on her way to Hogwarts. The entire Magical world knew the name 'Moreau'. Alexandra and Michael had been very famous. They were responsible for many new and advanced spells that were now in use all over the world. Therefore, their accidental deaths were perhaps more famous than the witch and wizard themselves.

This, of course, meant that Scarlett would be famous at Hogwarts as well. Even though she had grown up mostly in the Muggle world, the daughter of two of the most well-known wizards in a century coming to Hogwarts would be big news and Scarlett was worried about what would be expected of her.

Scarlett picked up the photo album and placed it in her wardrobe with the other books she was leaving behind and closed the door. She checked her trunk one last time to ensure she had everything she needed while her Barred Owl perched in her cage, watching her with her large amber eyes. The owl hooted dolefully as Scarlett locked the photo album away.

"What?" Scarlett asked, looking up at the large bird. The owl hooted again while flapping one wing in the direction of the wardrobe. "I don't need it, Aura. We're going to school, not a memorial service." Aura stared at her with those wide amber eyes that said quite plainly: "You'll regret it if you leave it behind," Scarlett was about to say something more when her mother's voice echoed up the stairs.

"Scarlett, sweetheart, breakfast's ready! Hurry up, darling! We don't want to be late for the train!"

"Coming, Mum!" Scarlett called back. She glanced at Aura again. The owl hooted rather bleakly. Sighing heavily, Scarlett reached back into the wardrobe, seized the album and packed it securely in her trunk. Aura hooted happily. Scarlett rolled her eyes and hurried downstairs and into the kitchen where her parents were waiting for her.

"Oh, there she is!" Sara exclaimed excitedly as her only daughter entered the kitchen. "My baby's first ever day at Hogwarts! I'm so proud!" She placed a heaping plate of bacon and eggs on the table as Scarlett sat down.

"All I did was live until September 1st, Mum," said Scarlett abashedly. "I haven't done anything to be proud of yet."

"It's been your mother's dream to see her child go off to Hogwarts," said Jonathan from across the table as he folded up that day's edition of The Daily Prophet. "A dream I share with her, darling."

"I... I know, and I... I mean... I'm just... Dad, they were so smart," Scarlett whispered, voicing her fears for the very first time. "They were brilliant and the whole world looked up to them and... and I'm afraid that people at school will expect the same from me, and I..."

"Baby, don't worry about that," said Jonathan warmly. "You're an amazing girl and you'll do just fine at Hogwarts. I know it's hard. I remember my first year..."

"Oh, sweetheart, don't get him started," said Sara, returning to the table with a glass of orange juice for Scarlett. "You know your father and his stories, honey."

"Scarlett happens to like my stories," said Jonathan firmly. "Don't you, baby?"

"Of course I do, Daddy," said Scarlett sweetly. "Although, I know you were lying when you told me that there was no Hogwarts Express when you went to school and you had to walk the whole way in the snow without a coat." Sara choked on her own orange juice as she tried to hold in a laugh.

"He told you that?" she asked her daughter, who nodded.

"Every father has to have one of those stories, Sara," said Jonathan brightly. "It's one of the laws of fatherhood!"

-.-

Scarlett gave her room one last look over as her father collected her trunk and Aura's cage and took them out to the car. She knew she had packed everything, but she was determined to be completely sure. Once she was finished, she picked up her wand off of her dresser, walked to the door and only looked back once before closing the door behind her. Her wand seemed to vibrate with the very same excitement she felt as she descended the stairs. She remembered very well the day, three weeks ago, when she had first entered Ollivanders' wand shop in Diagon Alley.

Mr. Ollivander had been a very odd man indeed. He had long, wispy white hair and bright eyes that had caused her to feel as though she were being x-rayed. The old man in whose family the only wand shop in Diagon Alley had been in for centuries had taken her measurements and then started pulling wands from the many towering shelves and shoved them one at a time into her hands before jerking them out almost instantly.

After nearly half an hour, it seemed they had finally found the right fit. Ten and a quarter inches, vine wood and dragon heartstring. Mr. Ollivander then informed her that the wand, as she already knew, chooses the wizard. He also told her something she found rather disturbing. He explained that it was very interesting that a wand nearly identical to hers had been sold at the shop many years before to a young girl that looked remarkably similar to her. That wand had gone on to do a great many amazing things, just like the witch that it had belonged to.

This had concerned Scarlett greatly. She feared that perhaps the same would be expected of her. Her father, however, had reassured her that Ollivander had told stories like that when both he and Sara had purchased their wands and promised her that she needn't worry. Still, there was something in the way Mr. Ollivander had looked at her that made her feel as though maybe, just maybe, something was different about her… and she didn't want to be different.

-.-

The journey to King's Cross station was mostly uneventful. Scarlett sat in the backseat of her family's small sedan next to Aura's cage. Her mother was still gushing as she had done at breakfast, but Scarlett remained rather quiet. She was getting more and more nervous the closer they got to the station and she felt opening her mouth might make her feel even more nauseous than she already did.

Once at the station, her father loaded her trunk and Aura's cage onto a cart and wheeled it into the station while Sara and Scarlett walked behind him, Sara busily adjusting her daughter's hair.

"Its fine, Mum!" Scarlett exclaimed as they rushed through the magically concealed barrier to Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters. A scarlet steam engine sat before them as they emerged onto the platform, steam billowing wildly into the air. They made their way across the platform where hundreds of parents and students were saying their goodbyes and boarding the train. As they fought their way through the crowd, Scarlett crashed headlong into something soft and fell backwards. When she looked up, she realized she had collided with a young blonde girl about her own age.

"Sorry," the girl said apologetically as she stood to her feet and held out a hand to help Scarlett.

"Don't be, I ran into you," said Scarlett, taking the girl's hand and standing up herself. "I…" But she broke off. Both girl's had just looked into the other's eyes and as ocean blue met chocolate brown, both of them jumped as though an electric shock had just coursed through them. Scarlett felt intense waves of emotions wash over her. Everything from the most powerful love one could ever imagine to the greatest pain she had ever felt. One look into the other girl's eyes told Scarlett she had felt the very same thing.

"I… I should go." said the blonde girl. She scurried away. Scarlett nearly forgot about the girl as she and her parents continued down the platform. They stopped outside one of the last carriages and while Jonathan helped load Scarlett's trunk and Aura's cage into the luggage rack, Sara knelt down in front of her daughter.

"I… I want to give you something," she said, reaching into her pocket. She retrieved a golden necklace and passed it to Scarlett, who took it and examined it. It was a small golden circle shaped locket attached to a thin chain. Engraved on the locket were the images of a pair of oval stones, a golden snake, a goblet with a strange symbol engraved on it, and lastly, a sparkling silver staff surrounding what looked like the letter A, only without the line in the middle. "This belonged to your mother," Sara went on, watching Scarlett carefully. "She asked me to give this to you, should anything ever happen to her."

"W… what is it?" Scarlett asked perplexed.

"Honestly, I don't know," said Sara. "Alexandra insisted that I give it to you before you went to Hogwarts. It was very special to her. I remember her wearing it every time I saw her. She said it was… She said she wanted you to have it." It wasn't until she had bid her parents goodbye, waved to them as the train pulled out of the station, watching as her mother sobbed into a handkerchief while her father held her tightly, and had sat down in her otherwise empty compartment near the end of the train that it occurred to her that 'She said she wanted you to have it' was perhaps not what her mother had intended to say in regards to the locket.

Since she was alone, she took a moment to examine the locket more closely. Of course, the first thing anyone presented with a locket would do is attempt to open it, which Scarlett naturally tried to do. But try as she might, the locket remained subbornly closed. After several minutes and a couple of sore fingers, she gave up trying to open it and simply slipped the golden chain around her neck. The heavy locket settled against her chest. As she sat there, examining the locket, the compartment door slid open and a dark haired boy with grey eyes poked his head in.

"Is anyone sitting there?" He asked, indicating the empty seats. Scarlett shook her head. "Great!" said the boy. He entered the compartment and sat down across from Scarlett. "The name's Jake, Jake Warren."

"Scarlett Moreau," Scarlett replied.

"Whoa, really?" Jake asked in surprise. "As in the Scarlett Moreau? Wow, I've heard all about you, of course… Well, not about you exactly, but more your parents. What happened… that was the worst magical accident in a century! Oh, but you probably don't want to talk about them. Sorry, I'm being horribly insensitive… I'll shut up now." He said all of this incredibly fast and now he was blushing furiously.

"No, please, it's alright," said Scarlett kindly. "I don't really remember my parents anyway. I don't feel sad if I talk about them."

"Doesn't stop me feeling like a right prat, though," said Jake grimly.

"Why don't you tell me about your family, then?" Scarlett suggested lightly.

"Oh, you'd find my folks terribly dull," said Jake. "I'm muggleborn."

"Ooooh!" said Scarlett excitedly. "I've always wondered what's it's like for muggleborns. You hadn't even heard of magic before you got you letter, did you?"

"No, I had no idea," Jake replied. "Another world hidden in plain sight and I never suspected it until my letter arrived. My dad thought it was a joke, but we went to London anyway and once we went into the Leaky Cauldron he knew it was all real."

"What did they say?" asked Scarlett. "You're parents, I mean. When they found out you were going to be a wizard."

"Oh, well, they're quite pleased now that they know more." Jake replied. "They were worried at first, but they've read our course books and now they're quite excited. They're still concerned about the whole muggleborn controversy, but…"

"I think all that stuff is just rubbish," said Scarlett firmly. "I live in a Muggle town and most of my friends back home are Muggles, and they're really nice. All that muggleborn stuff is just prejudice."

"Thanks," Jake said very gratefully. "At least I'll have one friend at Hogwarts."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll have more than one," said Scarlett with a smile. "My dad says the Ministry's just afraid of another war and wants to keep muggleborns suppressed, that's why there's all of the anti-muggleborn legislation. I don't think you'll have many problems at Hogwarts. Professor Phoebus lets everyone in so long as they're magical."

Jake must have said something in reply, but Scarlett didn't hear him. Her attention had instead been drawn to the sound of hurried footsteps out in the corridor. She stood and pushed open the door in time to see three blonde boys rush passed and forced themselves through a compartment door further down the train. The same blonde girl that Scarlett realized could only be the boys' sister hurried after them, but the boys entered the compartment first.

"Sorry, sis," said the boy who appeared to be the oldest. "We're full up in here. You'll have to find another one." He shut the door. Looking quite upset, the girl turned and made her way back up the train.

"You can sit in here with us," Scarlett said as the girl drew nearer. The girl looked up at her, surprised. Her eyes widened slightly and she avoided Scarlett's gaze.

"I… I don't think I should…"

"Don't be silly," Scarlett interrupted her. "There's plenty of room! Come on…" She held the door open. The girl glanced into a couple of surrounding compartments, found them to be full as well, and reluctantly accepted Scarlett's offer. She glanced up at Scarlett as she slipped into the compartment and as their eyes met once again they both felt the very same sensations they had on the platform. Neither girl mentioned this as the blonde girl entered the compartment and sat down in the middle seat. By the time Scarlett sank back into the window seat next to her, Jake was already talking.

"Jake's the name," he introduced himself. "Jake Warren."

"Lilly," said the girl. "Lilly Harcourt," She glanced sideways at Scarlett. "What's your name?" she asked, her eyes locked firmly on Scarlett's neck.

"Scarlett Moreau," she replied, already prepared for the way Lilly's blue eyes widened at the sound of her name.

"Alexandra and Michael Moreau's daughter?" she asked in a surprised voice, no longer seeming quite as frightened of Scarlett as she had before.

"The one and only," said Jake brightly.

"I'm nowhere near as interesting as people seem to think," said Scarlett quietly. "I'm not special…"

"You're the daughter of the brightest witch and wizard in the last hundred years!" Jake exclaimed.

"You'll probably be way ahead of the rest of us at Hogwarts," said Lilly. "Even if you're only half as smart as your parents, you'll be brilliant!"

"I've been reading all of our course books from cover to cover since I got them," said Jake uncertainly. "But I still don't know if it'll be enough…"

"I haven't even opened mine," said Lilly with a shrug. Jake clearly found this whole conversation uncomfortable because he abruptly changed the subject.

"Do either of you have any idea what house you'll be in?" he asked curiously.

"Gryffindor," said Lilly instantly. "My whole family's been in Gryffindor since as long as anybody can remember. They'll already have my name stamped onto my bedpost." She glanced at Scarlett. "What about you? Ravenclaw, I'd say if I were to guess."

"Maybe," said Scarlett rather distantly. "My mum really wants me to be in Hufflepuff, that was her House, but I'm not sure…"

"Anything's better than Slytherin," said Lilly darkly. "The whole lot of them are…"

"My dad was in Slytherin," said Scarlett lightly. "And he's just about the nicest man you could meet."

"Well, it's just… every wizard who's ever gone over to the dark side has come out of Slytherin." Lilly said delicately. "I wouldn't want the reputation."

The rest of the journey went smoothly. The three first years chatted idly as the sky outside grew darker. Lilly and Scarlett grew much more comfortable with each other the longer they sat together. Lilly, in particular, found that after awhile the feelings of tremendous pain and loss she felt when she looked at Scarlett waned. The feelings of unimaginable love, however, stayed. She couldn't understand this. She had just met this girl, and while she certainly liked Scarlett, she couldn't possibly love her as much as she felt she should.

Lilly found that, although odd, it wasn't a bad thing to feel. In fact, the more often she looked at Scarlett, the more the feeling of pain went away, leaving a comfortably warm glow in her heart instead. She was sure Scarlett felt the same things, although she had decided not to mention this to the other girl just in case she had lost her mind and the brunette felt nothing at all.

The girls snacked on sweets they bought from an elderly witch pushing a small trolley through the train. They shared willingly with Jake, who had brought along a package of his favorite Muggle sweets, many of which Lilly had never encountered before. Jake received a great surprise indeed when he picked up a pentagon shaped package which turned to be a Chocolate Frog. The frog turned as soon as Jake opened the box and leapt straight at Jake's face, bounced off his forehead, and clattered to the floor.

Scarlett and Lilly were both doing their very best to keep themselves from laughing, but one glance between the girls was all it took to send both of them into shaking fits of laughter. Clinging to each other, the girls would've rolled onto the floor had the compartment been big enough.

"Sorry," said Scarlett when she had at last regained some self-control. Lilly, meanwhile, was still chortling. "I'm sorry, Jake, but... that was hilarious."

"Yeah, really funny that was," he said dryly. "Where'd it go anyway?"

"They'll escape if you don't catch them quick," said Lilly, still grinning widely. "It's long gone by now."

"Check the card, though," said Scarlett idly. "You can start collecting."

"The card...?" Jake asked his eyes narrowed with confusion.

"The card in the package," said Lilly. "It's in the back there. It'll have a famous witch or wizard on it." Jake reached into the package and pulled out the card and flipped it over. The image of a raven haired man peered up at him.

"Harry Potter," he said, reading the name off the card.

"I've never gotten that one before," said Lilly. "Have you?" she asked Scarlett. The brunette shook her head.

"No, I've never even heard of him..." She reached out and took the card from Jake so she could read the information on the back.

"Regarded as one of the most important magical figures of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, Harry James Potter was in part responsible for the downfall of the dark wizards known as Voldemort and Grindelwald.

"Harry Potter played Quidditch for his Hogwarts House team, Gryffindor, and briefly played professional Quidditch for England. He also assisted in the development of a potion that was capable of nullifying the effects of Unforgivable Curses

"Harry was married to Hermione Elizabeth Granger, who is suspected to be in the same lineage of the Atlantean goddess, Aurora. Together the couple had four children, all girls."

"Voldemort…" Lilly said slowly. "Grindelwald… No wonder those guys turned to the dark side. I would too if my mother had called me Voldemort. Seriously, what sort of idiot looks at their little baby and says, 'Oh look, he looks like a little Voldemort!'?"

"Maybe that name was in style back then," Scarlett suggested. "That was five hundred years ago. I'd bet there were lots of people named Voldemort back then."

"Voldemort wouldn't have been a pretty name five thousand years ago," said Lilly. "I mean I've heard some weird ones, but Voldemort takes the prize."

"This Potter must have been a really powerful wizard," said Jake, putting an end to the girls' debate over popular twentieth century names. "To defeat all those wizards, he would have to have been."

"I wonder if those wizards had anything to do with the Great War," Lilly pondered. "I mean, a huge wizard war would have to attract the attention of Muggles. Maybe that's how they found out about us, about magic."

"Maybe," said Scarlett. "I mean, no one knows how it really started, do they? There aren't any records from that time left. But, I suppose that could've been what caused it."

They changed into their school robes as night fell and soon enough the train began to slow and finally it eased to a stop in Hogsmeade Station. There was a tremendous banging and clattering as hundreds of students moved into the corridor. Scarlett, Lilly, and Jake joined the group and made their way out onto the platform. It was a clear, crisp night and a full moon shone brightly over their heads as they made there way along the platform. Suddenly, a loud whistle sounded and a deep, gravelly voice began to shout;

"First years! First years! All first years, come this way please!" They moved forward, pushing through the crowd until they saw a large, muscled man with a thick gray beard and a shiny bald head that was covered with what looked like a striped train engineer's cap. The man was leaning on a thick, wooden cane and grinning widely at them as all of the first years gathered around him.

"Let me be the first to welcome you all to Hogwarts," he said gruffly. "Doddard's the name. I'm groundskeeper here at Hogwarts. Now, if you'll all follow me, we'll be getting to the school a bit differently than the rest of your classmates." He turned and stomped off, leading the first years down a long, narrow trail and to the edge of a vast lake.

"We'll be taking the boats there," said Doddard, pointing at a small fleet of rickety looking boats that didn't look remotely seaworthy. Doddard climbed into the lead boat, however, so the first years all clambered into the wooden craft and then they were off, cruising across the jet black lake with no visible means of propulsion. The boats sailed along the coast and rounded a large rock face, bringing Hogwarts into view. The massive castle sat atop a cliff on the far side of the lake, its many turrets and towers glistening in the moonlight.

"Whoa…" Scarlett heard Jake mutter from behind her.

"Pictures just don't do it justice," Lilly whispered from Scarlett's left. "It's incredible!" Scarlett was about to reply when she felt a searing pain course through her head and a vision flashed before her eyes that could only have lasted a second, but she would remember that image for the rest of her life. The castle above her was riddled with battle damage. Fires raged from the windows and a giant bluish magical shield was flickering over the burning school with the effort of blocking the balls of magical fire that raced over Scarlett's head and splashed against it…. And then Hogwarts was back to normal. The fires were gone and the moon shone brightly behind the school again.

"Are you okay?" Lilly asked, noticing Scarlett looked rather pale.

"Fine, I'm fine, I'm just… I'm a little seasick." Scarlett replied, hoping Lilly wouldn't think about the fact that the lake was completely calm. Lilly put a comforting arm around the brunette's shoulders and kept it there until the boats gently bumped up against the stone platform inside the school boathouse. The new students all disembarked and followed Doddard up a tremendously long set of stone steps until they at last they reached a set of large oak doors.

The groundskeeper stepped up to the doors and rapped three times upon them. The doors swung open almost immediately. A very pretty young witch was striding toward them. She wore royal blue robes and her black hair bounced slightly as she walked. She came to a stop in the doorway with her hands clasped behind her back.

"The first years, Professor," said Doddard in a rather nervous voice that the first years were surprised to hear from him.

"Thank you, Doddard," said the witch kindly.

"Of course, ma'am," said Doddard, sweeping his hat off of his head and bowing to her. He then lumbered off passed her and disappeared through a door to the right.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said the witch once Doddard was gone. "My name is Professor Charity Grace, Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts, Head of Gryffindor House, and your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. The Sorting ceremony will begin shortly, but first I should tell you that you are attending the most prestigious school of magic in the world. Each of our school's houses have produced extraordinary witches and wizards and I'm certain each of you will be a great credit to which ever house you come to belong to. While you are within the walls of Hogwarts, your House will become a second family. You will live amongst your fellow Housemates and attend classes with Housemates of your same year.

"You would do well to remember, however, that each member of your House helps make up a whole. Good behavior and excellence in classes will earn points for your House. Breaking rules… well, clearly you will lose your House points. Your House will rise or fall together. At the end of the year, the points will be tallied and the House with the most points will be awarded the House Cup. As Head of Gryffindor House, I do hope that any of you who become Gryffindors will do your very best to ensure a Gryffindor victory this year. Now please, follow me."

Professor Grace led the first years into a vast entrance hall. A marble staircase lay directly ahead that led to the castle's many upper floors. Professor Grace, however, took them to the same door Doddard had entered which turned out to be the entrance to the Great Hall. Scarlett had heard of the Great Hall, of course, but to see it for herself was something else altogether different. A vast cathedral with four long tables at which the rest of the school sat waiting, watching the first years cross the hall by the light of a thousand candles that floated unsupported in midair and the moon itself, shining brightly down upon them from the magical ceiling above that was magically enchanted to look like the sky outside.

Scarlett's eyes, however, were drawn to the High Table at the far end of the hall where the teachers were sitting. In the very center of the table, sitting in a high backed chair, could only be Headmistress Phoebus. Professor Phoebus was an elderly witch with long gray hair tied in a neat bun behind her head. Despite her age, she seemed to almost radiate an eternal youth that resonated around her much like the magic of Hogwarts itself. Professor Phoebus sat with her fingertips together, staring at a point in the night sky above them with an expression on her face as though she could see something that the rest of them could not.

Professor Grace stopped in front of the High Table and turned to face the rest of the school. The first years all gathered together before her, all of them feeling the eyes of the hundreds of students staring at their backs. Doddard ambled through a door behind the staff table carrying a four legged stool, which he placed at Grace's side. He then sat a very ragged wizard's hat atop it and backed away, bowing to Grace once again.

"What's the hat for?" Jake whispered into Scarlett's ear. Before she could reply, a rip near the brim opened wide and the hat began to sing.

'Fifteen hundred years ago

When Hogwarts was first started,

It was decided I would chose

How students would be parted

The Founders four created the Houses,

But of course you know them well,

The House in which you will end up

Is where your minds must dwell

Perhaps you belong in Gryffindor with the

Daring and brave at heart,

Or perhaps in Ravenclaw, amongst

The intelligent and smart

Or maybe Slytherin is more your taste

Where live those with great ambission,

Be sorted here and you will find others

Focused on their mission

But then again, perhaps it's Hufflepuff

Where you will discover you belong,

The just and loyal reside here and

They work hard all day long

This ceremony is one of old

Next year we'll perform it once again,

For this year my song is over

Let the Sorting now begin!'

The hat fell silent and became still as the school broke into applause. Professor Grace retrieved a roll of parchment from inside of her robes and unfurled it.

"Branson, Hope!" She called the first name on the list. A terrified looking girl with mousy brown hair walked slowly up to Grace and sat on the stool. Grace put the hat on her head and stood back, waiting.

"Gryffindor!" the hat shouted after a few moments. The table on the far left began to clap as Hope went to join them.

"Carson, Mikayla!" called Grace and a small pale girl with deep set eyes donned the hat.

"Slytherin!" bellowed the hat seconds later. This continued on and on as the group of first years waiting to be Sorted grew smaller and smaller. Finally, Professor Grace called;

"Harcourt, Lilly!" Lilly released Scarlett's hand, something which neither girl had realized they were doing, and walked up to the stool. Grace had barely put the hat on her head when it shouted 'Gryffindor!". Lilly smiled brightly at Scarlett and Jake and hurried off to her new House table. Jake and Scarlett continued to wait, Scarlett's own nervousness now reaching an entirely new level of ferocity. She felt quite like fainting when 'Moran, Allen!' became a Ravenclaw. She knew it would soon be her turn. This turned out to be true because as Allen Mortese left to join the Ravenclaw table, Grace looked back at the list and called;

"Moreau, Scarlett!" Scarlett walked up to the stool very deeply in thought. She had truly wanted to go into Hufflepuff, not only just to please her mother. She had also been interested in Ravenclaw, if only because of her birth parents. Now, though, she wanted nothing more than to become a Gryffindor because that was the House that Lilly belonged to. It wasn't a logical desire because Scarlett didn't consider herself brave in the least. Smart, certainly. Hardworking and loyal, absolutely! But brave…? No, she didn't belong in Gryffindor at all. Grace slipped the hat onto her head and she immediately heard a low voice speaking into her ear.

"Ah, yes, now this one will be interesting, yes… The mind is incredible, that's certain. But there is a great amount of loyalty and purity of spirit as well, qualities of a Hufflepuff. How to choose, how to choose…" Desperate, Scarlett realized that the hat seemed to be able to read her mind. Maybe, just maybe...

"I have to be in Gryffindor," she thought desperately, praying the hat would understand. "I have to be in Gryffindor,"

"Gryffindor," said the hat in highly amused tones. "No offense my dear, but courage and bravery are not your best attributes. No, Ravenclaw would be your best fit I say. That's where you should be. I've never been wrong before. You still disagree? Well, so be it then, you'll get your wish. Gryffindor!" The hat shouted to the rest of the school and Scarlett, unable to believe her luck, dashed off to the Gryffindor table and slipped into the seat next to Lilly, who smiled widely at her.

"I thought you'd get Ravenclaw for sure!" Lilly whispered happily as 'Nelson, Ryan!' became a Hufflepuff. The Sorting went on until Jake's name was called. He joined Grace at the school and she placed the frayed hat on his head. The hat took a while to make up its mind, but at last the hat bellowed, 'Gryffindor!'. Jake slid off of the stool and bounded over to the table and fell into the seat next to Scarlett looking relieved.

The Sorting ceremony ended a few moments later when 'Sheridan, Nora!' became a Gryffindor and Professor Grace took the hat and stool away. Professor Phoebus then stood slowly to her feet and beamed around at all of them.

"Welcome to another year at Hogwarts!" She exclaimed brightly. "It is a true pleasure to see all of you here tonight. I'm certain that all of you are quite anxious to indulge yourselves in our excellent feast, but first I have a few start-of-term notices I wish to announce. Firstly, our new students... and a few of our old hands as well... should note that the dark forest is strictly forbidden to all students. Additionally, our caretaker Mr. O'Brien has asked that I once again remind you that all magic is prohibited in the corridors between classes." She paused, her eyes narrowing darkly. "Also, starting this year... the entirety of the seventh floor apart from the corridor leading to Gryffindor Tower is out-of-bounds. Anyone caught entering; attempting to enter, walking in, running through, dancing on, or eyeing suspiciously any other part of the seventh floor will be expelled without question." The entire Hall had gone if possible even quieter at this pronouncement. Professor Phoebus, however, brightened rather suddenly and said, "And now, our feast!" The golden plates that lined the four House tables filled magically with food right before the student's eyes.

Scarlett, Lilly and Jake all ate vigorously along with the rest of the Hall. Everything was very delicious. Scarlett managed to avoid anyone mentioning her parents until the plates cleared and the desserts arrived in the same way the meal had. The blonde boy who had shut the train door in Lilly's face earlier that day sat a few seats down from Scarlett with the other two boys and called out her name as she sampled a large block of strangely colored ice cream.

"So, you're really Michael and Alexandra's daughter, then?" he asked her bluntly.

"Sam, don't," said Lilly in angry tones. "She doesn't want to talk about that…"

"Actually, its okay," said Scarlett gently, turning her gaze onto the blonde boy whose name apparently was Sam. "Yes, I am their daughter. I don't know what anyone's expecting, but I'm not all that good with magic yet."

"Forgive Sam," said the blonde boy on Sam's left. "He's got about as much tact as a cardboard cutout. I'm Jace, by the way and this is our younger brother Peter," he said, indicating the boy on Sam's right. "I'm in the third year." He went on. "Pete's in the second and Sam's in the fifth. You clearly already know our baby sister."

"Yeah," said Jake. "We let her sit with us on the train,"

"Right," Jace replied. "I know that didn't give you the best first impression, but… well, it's sort of a tradition in our family. The newbie find their own seat on the train. I had to, so did Peter and Sam."

"It still wasn't very nice," said Scarlett pointedly.

"No," Jace agreed rather reluctantly. "But if we hadn't you two might never have met and you seem to be getting alone quite well, if you ask me." Scarlett couldn't argue that point. It was true that, had Jace and his brothers not locked Lilly out of their compartment, she and Lilly wouldn't have ridden on the train together, wouldn't be friends, and Scarlett herself would likely be in a completely different House. It was a long string of actions and reactions that resulted in her current situation. Choices and consequences, she supposed, had worked to place her here. Why these things had happened she couldn't even begin to guess and she didn't want to. She was thrilled with her new House and how she had gotten there didn't really interest her very much at all.

Scarlett, Jake, Lilly and her brothers got along well after that. In fact, by the time Professor Phoebus stood up from the staff table to speak again before bed, they might even have become friends… except, perhaps, for Sam. The Headmistress walked over to the podium where she had made her opening remarks and smiled widely at all of them.

"Before we all retire for the night, I would like to once again welcome our new students!" she said brightly. "Hogwarts is, truly, a wondrous place. It is full of wonder and mystery. I believe you will, in time, uncover many of it's secrets. I would, however, warn you to be careful... There are many dangers within these walls that you would do well to avoid." Professor Phoebus's gaze, which had been sweeping across the Hall as she spoke, locked directly onto Scarlett for the briefest of moments but in that moment, Scarlett couldn't help but feel that the Headmistress's last message had been meant specifically for her. Why, however, she couldn't possibly imagine.

The first years were led out of the Hall and up through the castle's many long and twisting corridors by Gregory Crowe, a sixth year and Gryffindor Prefect. At last they reached the portrait of a very pretty young girl with long, flowing brown hair. If Scarlett hadn't been so full and warm from the feast, she might have noticed the girl in the picture staring intently at her, almost as though she were trying to see through her. Scarlett didn't notice this, however, and instead followed the other first years through the hole that was revealed behind the portrait as Gregory gave the password, 'Butterbeer'. Together, they made their way across the empty common room and up the stairs to their dormitories.

Tired and very sleepy, the five first year girls didn't take the time for introductions that night. Instead, they all picked out their beds and changed out of their trunks which had been brought up during the feast and climbed wearily into bed. Lilly pulled back the red and gold printed curtains on her four poster bed and watched Scarlett slip into her own bed.

"Quite a day," she said sleepily. Scarlett tilted her head to the left and smiled warmly at her new friend.

"Quite a day." she agreed.