Here's Chapter 2! Please Review :D!

The eleven-year-old had started to feel a bit lonely, now that Aria was asleep and her cabin was empty, but as if on cue, the door slid open.

"Oi, over here, George," a voice said, then a tall-ish boy with flaming red hair stuck his head in, "Hi there, mate. All the compartments are empty, mind if we come in here?"

Amber nodded and gestured to the seats across from her as the boy sat down, closely followed by another that looked exactly identical to him.

"Name's Fred Weasley," the first boy said happily, "This is my brother George. We're first years. And you are?"

"Amber Chase, first year," she replied with a smile.

Fred and George nodded then one of them pointed at Aria, "Cool cat."

"Thanks. Her name is Aria." A slightly awkward aura filled the cabin.

"So," one of the twins started, "You have any family at Hogwarts?"

"Oh," Amber said, "Yeah, I have a second year cousin. He offered for me to sit with him, but I thought it would be a bit tense with him catching up with his friends and all."

"Oh."

Wow, this was way more than uncomfortable. Amber wished that she could just run out of the compartment and find Oliver, but of course that wasn't going to happen. The one on the right, who must've been George, opened his mouth, "So, where do you wanna be?"

"Pardon?"

"Where do you wanna be?" Fred asked, "Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, or Ravenclaw."

"Oh," Amber said with a laugh, "Oh, I already know that I'm going to be in Gryffindor. No question about it."

Now it was George's time to laugh, and look at her like she was a tad crazy, "You already know? Ha. You can't just choose where you are going to be. It's chosen for you."

"Most of my family was or is in Gryffindor. I'm absolutely going there, and I can choose if I want to," Amber replied indignantly.

"No, you can't. You will go where the Sorting Hat puts you, and I'm putting a Knut to say that you won't be in Gryffindor." Fred shot back.

"Ah, a Knut. Big bet there, mate. You're on. I'm going to be in Gryffindor, you just wait," Gosh who did these guys think they were? Amber could tell already that they weren't going to get along. These Weasleys were impossible and irritating. Amber returned to focusing on Aria as the compartment door slid open.

"Anything from the trolley, sweethearts?" a plump lady pushing a snack trolley asked in a sweet voice.

"No," the twins said together then looked at Amber as if daring her to buy something.

Not that she was hungry, but just to annoy them Amber answered in an overly sugary voice, "May I please have a Chocolate Frog and some Pink Coconut Ice?"

"Of course, darling," the trolley lady handed over the candy and accepted Amber's money.

Fred and George looked on hungrily as Amber popped a shimmery pink square into her mouth, "Want some?"

They both shook their heads. Fine, if they were going to be difficult, then they could just watch her eat.

"Amber!" Angelina squealed as the compartment door opened.

"Angelina! Oh my gosh, I couldn't find you!" Amber set the sleeping Aria on the seat with the candy as she hugged her best friend.

"Mum and Dad started freaking about if I packed everything; nearly missed the train! I was sitting up front and got something from the trolley… Mum and Dad were so anxious; they forgot about breakfast. I only had an apple."

Amber and Angelina were talking and eating, gushing about and playing with Aria, wondering about Hogwarts, and comparing Chocolate Frog cards. They didn't even see Fred and George, who were looking on, a bit intrigued. Finally George coughed, and Angelina and Amber looked over.

"Oh yeah. Lina, Fred and George Weasley. Fred and George, Angelina Johnson," Amber introduced them as they nodded to each other.

Randomly, Amber gasped and reached to the luggage hold above her seat. She pulled something down. The three others looked at her questioningly as she revealed the Holyhead Harpies book. Angelina's eyes grew wider and her hands reached away from Aria in her lap and towards the book.

"No way! Where did you get this?" Angelina gasped.

"Oliver gave it to me for my birthday. Isn't it great?"

"Amber! Your birthday is in July! Why on earth didn't you show this to me sooner?"

"Slipped my mind."

Angelina rolled her eyes as she started flipping through the pages. Amber looked at Fred. She saw a happy glint reflecting in his eyes. Something inside of her began to wonder if he was really that bad after all.

"You two like Quidditch?" she asked brightly.

"Oh yeah," they replied in unison.

"Well, as long as you aren't fans of the Heidelberg Harriers we are completely fine then," she added with a genuine smile. They both smirked back.

Oliver then opened the compartment door. Amber couldn't think of worse timing due to the disapproving look he gave her upon seeing her smiling match with the Weasley boys. He could be a bit over protective.

"You lot better get changed now, we're almost there," he winked at Amber as if to say see you at the Gryffindor table and walked away.


Hogwarts was breathtaking. Amber could barely blink as she sat in a small boat with Angelina, the twins, and a boy named Lee Jordan. But nothing could prepare her for what she saw when they all walked in a line straight down the middle of the Great Hall. The ceiling was bewitched to look like a beautiful night sky, and hundreds of happy eyes looked at the nervous first years from the four House tables. Amber only found solace in waving to Oliver when the Sorting Hat started his song.

After a few kids had been sorted, though none to Gryffindor, Professor McGonagall, the sixty-something-year-old Head of Oliver's house, called "Chase, Amber!" Some cheers erupted from her cousin and his friends, causing Amber to blush and send a shy smile their way. The old Sorting Hat felt foreign, but welcoming on her head as its raspy voice appeared in her mind.

Well, well. What do we have here? Hmm, distinctly pureblooded, but what some may call a "traitor". I can see that you would be very brave if you could let go of your troubled past, yes. Much potential, very, very much potential, if only you would let in the key to accessing that prospective.

Amber was quite confused by what the hat was telling her: Uh, hi. What do you mean by, the key?

Oh, child. That is for me to know and you to find out. You have an extremely bright mind; perhaps Ravenclaw could help you unlock the mystery of your future?

No, with all do respect, I don't think I'd truly fit in Ravenclaw.

Very well, child, I do agree… Though you seem to have characteristics of all four Houses, I don't think Hufflepuff would bring you to where you need to be. Hmm, interesting. It seems to be that your blood could go either way: Slytherin or Gryffindor.

My blood? What does my blood have to do with this?

Well, a smart girl like you should know that Slytherin preferred purebloods.

But that's not what you meant, is it? You meant something about my ancestors.

Perhaps Ravenclaw would be good for you.

What do you mean by my blood could go either way?

No need to get haughty with me. I see your mind I understand what you are saying. You, child, are a Wood and a Chase. Look around; see what that means to you.

Amber was very confused, and it seemed to be that the whole hall was too. Her sorting was taking longer than usual, but Amber wasn't thinking about that. Look around; see what that means to you. What on earth? Then she understood. Wood was her mother's maiden name and Chase was her father's name. Oliver was a Wood, and he was in Gryffindor. Her great-grandparents on her father's side had been Slytherin, but it was more than that. Your blood can go either way. No, it couldn't be. She couldn't be. All of the original founders' bloodlines were supposed to have died out. Could it be that she and her siblings were the last in two long and prestigious pedigrees?

There we are, child. Now, for me to choose, are you more of a Chase or a Wood?

A Wood. I may possibly be related to Salazar Slytherin, but I wouldn't succeed in his house.

Are you sure? Slytherin has brought good to many people.

No… no I am positive that I'm a Gryffindor, even if I do look good in green and silver.

The Sorting Hat let out a laugh and broke the complete silence in the Great Hall, "Gryffindor!" The Gryffindors let out huge cries of victory, as Amber hurried over to the table and sat between Oliver and a fifth year girl who clapped her back and welcomed her to the House along with all of the other kids.

First year after first year, the night sped on as all four tables cheered or, in some cases involving Slytherin and Gryffindor, jeered. Angelina, Fred and George, and the Lee Jordan boy all were sorted to Gryffindor. The magnificent feast reminded Amber how little she had eaten that day, and gave time for Oliver to introduce all of his friends. Amber talked with everyone around her until Professor Dumbledore announced that it was bedtime. No longer was she worried or uncomfortable. Amber had found her home, and an odd secret, but mostly a place where she was happy.