Hogwarts. August, 1991.
"In the beginning, there were four founders. Two males, two women. Godric, Salazar, Rowena and Helga. All of them were gifted in their own way and they were the best of friends. But darkness spread and tore them apart. Salazar ran his way from the castle for unknown reasons, never to be seen again. Godric looked for him everywhere without succes until he suffered the same fate, his sword were all that remained of him. Rowena died of grief, mourning the loss of both her lover and her own daughter, Helena who vanished only a short time afterwards. Helga, the last of the founders, lived alone for decades until she perished herself. And now, thousand years old, things haven't changed. The houses are still devided and the truth is still hidden."
The woman, who just told the summary of old legends, paused as she took a sip of her cup of tea. Then she looked at the visitor in front of her. "But there's another legend to come, isn't it?" Regina asked, her dark eyes held a shimmer that usually were a sign that she were planning something. "A badger will follow the lion, out of truce and loyalty, on the long journey. Then it will come one day where the badger will do the right thing, to attack the snake to defend it's fire-forged friend."
The woman rose up and walked around the circular office, she wore a frown. "You know as well I do. My daughter is a badger at heart, even if she yet must be sorted and if I'm right, there's a high chance that she might follow this lion."
"Regina, dear." The headmaster said. "It is, as you said, a legend and we can't be sure if that points at your daughter-"
"Elyon is the same age as the boy. She befriends him and her life will be just as predicted, I know that. It wasn't just one prophecy that were foretold that evening, but two. But it can be avoided if she follows the path I made for her, then she can live a long life intact."
"Tampering with fate is a dangerous thing to do, Regina." Albus warned. "I can see that you are very concerned about your daughter, but I can assure you that nothing dangerous can fall on her."
Regina scoffed. "Your words means a lot, Albus. But I don't risk it and Elyon's fate can be changed if I decide. If we're lucky, then perhaps she fall into another house than what she's predicted to."
The headmaster knew that he couldn't change the mind of his former student. Besides, Regina had changed a lot since the war, the loss of her brother had harden her heart. "I can't change your mind, it seems to. But as it is, your daughter is a young girl and her education is important after all, isn't it?"
"Of course." Regina snorted. "That's why she'll study here. Elyon will gain the best education the world can give her." She replied. "Very well. Thank you for your time, Albus."
"It was nothing, it was quite charming to meet a former student of mine again." Albus Dumbledore spoke with a smile. "Until we meet again, Regina."
King's Cross. September 1st, 1991.
Their father couldn't get a day off, considering that he were an Auror, so it fell in the mother's duty to follow her children to King's Cross and wave them off until she saw them again by Christmas holiday. "Stick together now." Regina ordered her son and daughters, she brought her youngest as well
The oldest of the four siblings were Randall, their firstborn and the only son in the family. He wore golden hair, slightly long almost to his shoulders and tied as a tail and his eyes were blue-green, they held a spark of casualty and mischievousness. He wore a grin as he teasingly glanced at his younger sister, who were very irritated at him for the moment. He pushed his cart, loaded with his trunk and a cage with an owl.
On top of his trunk sat the youngest sister, a small girl with short black hair and dark brown eyes. She wore a sneaky grin, as if she were planning on a mischief like her big brother. Adele were the youngest, but she weren't yet in schoolage to leave for Hogwarts, so she were just following them to the train.
Gwendolyn, the secondborn and the oldest sister, were mostly alike their mother with the black hair and pale skintone. She, like Randall, had inherited their father's eyes, but still she were so unlike her brother as they could be. For the moment, she were highly annoyed by her brother's constant idiocy.
"Randall, you go first and no tricks!" Regina told her son while she held her third daughter on the hand, she gave a slight glare to him as a warning to not testing the waters.
The blonde shrugged his shoulder. "Alright, mum." He said and prepared himself. After making sure no one where paying attention to him, especially any Muggles, he grinned before he ran with his cart along with his youngest sister and vanished through the wall of the platform 9 and 3/4.
Regina, their mother, nodded. "Gwendolyn, your turn."
The oldest daughter didn't answered, but she held her stance straight and ran through the platform, disappeared just like her brother.
"Now, Elyon. I will come afterwards, so you go on alone." Regina told her thirdborn, glancing at the small girl who meekly nodded.
Elyon took a hold of her trolley, her trunk were onboard of it and a cage of braided straw, inside slept a black cat. Her hands grasped the handle of the trolley tightly, she swallowed the lump in her dy throat and her feet moved by themselves. They began to walk fast which soon turned into running.
She didn't heard anything else, only the wind blowing in her ears and how her heart slammed violently against her chest. The surface of the platform came only closer and Elyon closed her eyes tightly, bracing herself for the impact in case she would fail.
For only a moment, it felt...in all honesty, Elyon couldn't feel anything else than her violent heartbeats and her heavy inhale. It were as if she had moved through time and space. Then it stopped as suddenly it came. Elyon were still and she dared to open her eyes again, they were bluegreen as her father, her brother and her sister.
Elyon stared at the sight in front of her. There it was, the big train in scarlet red color and grand in it's magnificity. Hundreds of children and teenages were gathered and mingled around on the platform, the train conductors loaded inside the cages of pets and students' trunks into the train's cargo hold. Even if she had been here before, waving off her brother and sister as child...the feeling that she were going to jump onto huge, red train and sit there on her first journey to the school.
Nothing could beat that feeling.
She couldn't help than to smile, Elyon had looked forward to this ever since she had seen Randall going to Hogwarts first time and then Gwendolyn. Now, it was her turn. She pushed her trolley and looked around, students were all around here and chatted with their friends or in the soon-to first years' case, they were keeping close to their parents and looked very shy.
Elyon passed a group of teenagers, gathered around a boy with dreadlocks with a box in his hands and two, identical and redhaired twins who grinned. A hairy leg stuck out of the box and the group yelled in shock and fear. Elyon swallowed and hurried forward, trying to find Randall.
Until she looked behind to the group with the redhaired twins and saw her big brother talking with them. Well, it looked she couldn't talk to him now since Elyon were very afraid for spiders and she would rather stay a distance with hundreds of meters away from them.
Perhaps if she looked for Gwendolyn? Elyon's eyes darted around for a blackhaired sister with identical eyes like hers. There, she spotted her. But that was no go either. Gwen stood with two girls and chatted, the closest to her was a girl with Asian appearence and straight, black hair.
'That must be Cho Chang...I heard Gwen talk about her once to twice.' Elyon thought to herself. However, Gwen didn' seemed much happy about the other girl, who must be Marietta Edgecombe. Gwen talked about her and their intense rivaltry.
It would be wise to not disturb, at least. Before they left home, Elyon were told by her sister to not talk to Marietta to any costs and she didn't wanted to upset her sister either.
Going to Hogwarts were all about taking the first step alone, after all.
Then Elyon's mind stopped when she almost ran into a boy in her age. At her first glance, Elyon had a feeling that perhaps this could be her first friend...until she spotted a certain scar in his head and realized it was Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived.
"It's impolite to stare." Her mother's strict words echoed in her head and Elyon quickly turned away her attention. She were sure that no one liked to be stared at and her mother would be even more stricter if she had done that. Besides, it wouldn't be a good first impression if she were caught staring at him.
CRASH
Elyon, who had been sunken in her thoughts, had managed to crash into a lamp post with a big sign that clearly said "HOGWARTS EXPRESS" and her trolley fell over the side. The small cage with her cat began to hiss furiously, but Elyon tried to get off the heavy trunk, which had fallen straight onto her, off herself and her arms weren't especially strong either.
Laughter began to ring around her and Elyon felt her face burn of embarrassment, she franatically tried to push away the trunk off her.
Suddenly she weren't alone on getting rid of the heavy weight, there were someone else who helped her and soon, it were gone and she inhaled deeply. "Thanks..." She gasped and shook her head, trying to rid of her dizziness.
She felt her heart almost drop to her stomach when she saw who had helped her, no one other than Harry Potter himself! "I..." She stammered and quickly looked down, trying to not stare. "Thank you..." She mumbled. "You didn't had to..."
"You needed help, it looked like it was the only right." Harry replied and offered his hand to help her up.
Elyon rose onto her feet with his help and she lift her head, looking at his face this time although she aimed to look at his eyes. "Well...I already said thank you?" She mumbled and Harry nodded. "I...uh...I'm Elyon." She offered a hand for him to shake. "Elyon Pemberton."
"Oh, I'm Harry. Harry Potter." He replied. "Are you beginning at Hogwarts too?"
Elyon nodded. "Yes, it's my first time." She answered as she picked up the cage with her cat, who still hissed for a while. "Oh my...Salem is going to be mad at me for a week now."
Harry looked interested. "Your cat is named Salem?"
Elyon blushed. "It was the only name I could think of. My brother thought it was hilarious." She explained and put the cage on top of her trunk, who they lifted into the trolley again. "I have a brother and a sister, both older than me. I would normally be with them, but they're with their respective friends and I promised to give them space." She explained.
Harry peeked into the cage, seeing a black kitten who hissed at him. Yes, it was very angry. "Your cat looks beautiful." Harry remarked.
"Oh...thank you." Elyon smiled. "He was a gift from my dad for my birthday. Also as an apology that he couldn't be here too."
The boy nodded. "It's still a nice gift. So...do we board our things into the trains by ourselves?"
"I guess so." Elyon replied with a shrug, she had honestly forgotten that detail and her siblings or mother hadn't really told anything about that at least.
They arrived to the cargo were all of the students' trunks were being loaded, but it appeared that the train conductors were busy somewhere else, so they attempted to do it by themselves. Harry and Elyon tried with all their might to lift his trunk onboard. He stood on the small stairs, trying to lift the trunk while Elyon pushed it from behind.
It were a horrible result since Elyon was too weak to lift the other end and Harry lost his grasp on the handle, so the trunk fell onto his foot. "I'm sorry!" Elyon instantly apologized, she felt guilty.
Harry were about to say something, but then they both jumped when a voice interrupted them. "Hey, need a hand?" It was one of the redhaired twins Elyon saw from before.
"Yes, please!" Harry said exhausted before Elyon could say otherwise. She backed away from the trunk, so she wouldn't be in their way.
"Oi! Fred, help out here!" The ginger twin yelled for his brother and Fred appeared as quickly. Both of them lifted the trunk onboard the train. "Hey, you need help too?"
Elyon blushed and stammered. "I..."
"I think she does." Harry put in once he figured out his new friend wouldn't answer properly due to how shy she were.
The twins nodded to each other and walked confidently to her trolley. Elyon grabbed the cage with her cat as they grasped the handles of her trunk, carrying it with ease and carried it onto the train. Elyon stared with widen eyes, taking in how strong they were.
"Thanks a lot." Harry said and wiped the sweat off his forehead, accidently revealing his scar.
The twins dropped their jaws.
"What's that?" One of the twin exclaimed and pointed at his scar.
"Bloody hell..." The other twin said. "Are you...?"
"Yes, he is." The first twin said and nodded. "Surely you are?" He added and turned to Harry.
"What?" Harry asked.
Elyon were suddenly very busy to fiddle with the buttons on her light yellow cardigan. 'I have a bad feeling about this...' She thought.
"Harry Potter!" They exclaimed in union.
"Oh him..." Harry said.
It was too much for her, Elyon snorted to hold back a laughter of how the situation turned into. She turned away her face to hide her blush.
"I mean, that's me."
Both of the two boys stood with dropped jaws and stared at him and Harry felt how he blushed. Elyon tried to make herself smaller in this awkward moment. hen to their relief, a voice near the open train door interrupted.
"Fred? George? Are you there?"
With one last glance at Harry, both of the twins jumped off the train to their mother.
Left were Harry and Elyon, who still held on the cage with Salem. Elyon looked at him, feeling very awkward. "I probably had to go now...I must see my mom off."
"Oh, go ahead." Harry said. "I see you later then?"
Elyon nodded with a smile. "Yes, thank you for helping me earlier. I hope we'll be friends if we happen to get into the same house."
"I sure hope that too." Harry replied and Elyon smiled one last time before she hurried down to the train platform. She exhaled. Now that was quite a meeting she never expected and it weren't even lunch yet.
She passed the family with the twins Fred and George, carefully glanced at the redhaired family which were now extended with their mother, an older brother, a younger brother and a younger sister who didn't seemed to be in the school age yet. Appearently their youngest brother were beginning at Hogwarts too.
Elyon's attention were caught when she saw her own family waiting for her. Randall laughed obnoxiously at something which probably irritated Gwen since she looked as if she could hit his face with a fist. Her youngest sister, Adele, stood there with crossed arms and pouted.
"There you are!" Randall boomed. "Exploring the train, huh?"
Elyon nodded, not really eager to tell about her awkward adventure. "What's with Adele?"
Gwen sighed. "She's mad. Mom stopped her from sneaking onto the train." She explained and looked at their mother, who looked very displeased with crossed arms. "Besides, we need to say goodbye before we leave. Train's leaving in five minutes."
Elyon turned to their mother. "Goodbye, mum." She told their mother and Regina embraced her, her usual stern attitude were as blown away.
"Elyon, I want you to know that I'm proud of you and you will do good in Hogwarts." Regina told her daughter as they began to walk towards one of the train doors. "You will make your true friends at Hogwarts during the seven years you will spend there and shape your destiny."
The girl nodded. "Yes, mum. I'll write every week if I can."
"And try getting into Gryffindor." Randall added. "If you don't, maybe Dad disown you."
"Randall, don't talk nonsense!" Gwen hissed at her brother. "Elyon is smart, she'll fall into Ravenclaw. Or if she's like Mother, then she'll go to Slytherin."
Adele perked up. "Yeah, get to Slytherin and give Malfoy a kick!" She demanded with a smirk.
"Enough. Elyon will fall into the house that suits her the best." Regina interrupted, she looked more strict at her children. "Randall, behave and do good in study more. Gwendolyn, try to keep your brother in line if you can. And Elyon, do your best and you know what I have warned you before."
Elyon frowned. "Don't make ties with wrong friends?"
"Exactly." Regina told her. "You must learn to differ from right and wrong. There's people who will convince you that you should have better friends, but you decide your friends and your choices."
A whistle howled.
"Off with you now." Regina ordered her children, she gave them a warm hug each and after Elyon got onto the train, her hand grabbed the shirt of little Adele who once again tried to jump aboard.
"Oh, come on!" Adele yelled.
Elyon looked through the open window of the now closed train door. "Goodbye, mum! Goodbye, Adele. I see you at Christmas. Tell Dad I love him!" She shouted and waved with her arm.
The train went in full motion, fast it went and as it rounded a few corners, it didn't took long to see that the Hogwarts Express now left the busy city of London and towards her first adventure.
There were many seats now being occupied by students, who appearently knew each other from before and Elyon, who only had her brother and sisters as company when she were growing up, felt for the first time very exposed and shy. She had never been away from her siblings or parents before and now, it were unclear what she were to do.
'I better find a seat somewhere...' She thought and went into an empty compartment, she sat down on the soft seats and set down the cage beside her. Elyon exhaled and it were quiet, she spent a moment to look through the window and saw how the train passed the fields of the countryside.
Elyon turned to the cat cage and unlocked the cage door, letting out her cat. Salem jumped out onto the floor and stretched before paying attention to his owner, staring at the young girl with it's eyes, blue as sapphires.
"Meow." Salem said and jumped onto the seat beside his owners, rolling into a ball and started to fall asleep. Elyon reached her hand and scratched him behind the ear, her cat purred.
Elyon sighed. "Oh Salem...I have no idea what I'm doing, really." She told her cat, feeling completely alone here in the empty compartment.
"You look awfully lonely here, don't you?"
She looked up to see a girl in her age at the door opening of the compartment. Elyon blinked surprised. The new girl had red-brown hair, long to the shoulders and warm brown eyes. "I can keep you company, if you want."
"Oh sure." Elyon replied hastily. "Please have a seat."
The girl marched over to the seat on the opposite and faced Elyon. "So we might become classmates? I'm Susan Bones." She offered a hand and Elyon took it, shaking it politely.
"My name is Elyon Pemberton."
"Pemberton? That Pemberton?" Susan exclaimed with widen eyes. "Like in the great Auror?"
Elyon blushed, nodding as she looked down. "Yes, it's my father. He weren't able to see me off."
"Oh, then my aunt must know him!" Susan said cheerfully. "My aunt Amelia is the head of the Justice Department, she must know him then. I'm so honored to meet his daughter."
"I'm not that special..." Elyon mumbled embarrassed. "I's the thirdborn..."
"But that means your grandchild to the Minister in Korea, right? On your mother's side."
Elyon looked up, it weren't many who noticed that fact. "Yes, that is correct. Grandfather wants me to take over when he steps down, but I don't know about that..."
Susan looked amazed. "That would be really amazing...but I don't think it works like that, does it?"
"Not exactly, but the election differs a lot from the British Ministry of Magic."Elyon began to explain. "In five years, my Grandfather is opening the election option and a representative of the Korean family clans chose a nominateé for the election. My mother, who's from the clan Heo, has already decided to cast me as a nominateé." Elyon's shoulders sank low as she sighed.
"Not to be rude, but why you?" Susanasked. "You're the third child, shouldn't the oldest child be more suitable?"
"Randall don't want to, he rejected the idea since he were five and he wants to go in our father's steps." Elyon told her. "And my sister Gwendolyn doesn't desire that either, she plans a career as healer. That left me as the third option and I know it sounds strange, but it seemed like my mother had decided on me since I was born."
Susan frowned. "You think she has planned it? I mean, it sounds like your mum wants you on that position."
"I don't know." Elyon replied. "She only told me that I can't form ties with a someone who'll be in our age and she said...meddling with fate is not good."
"Sounds like she wants you to avoid some sort of destiny. Has she told you what it is?" Susan asked curiously.
Elyon shook her head. "No and she forbid me from asking more."
"My aunt once took me to her work when I were small." Susan told. "Once I sat and overheard two men discussing a strange thing, I think they mentioned that Department of Mysteries and they said "A badger with a lion heart will stay true to the thunder and fight the snake by his side". Odd, isn't it?"
"Really odd." Elyon confirmed. "Maybe they talked in codes? I heard Aurors does that from my dad."
"Anyways." Susan shrugged. "I really hope we get into the same house together. My aunt Amelia were in Hufflepuff like my uncle, but my dad used to be in Gryffindor and my mom too. Where do you think you'll fall?"
"I can't tell." Elyon answered. "My dad were in Gryffindor and so is Randall. I had an aunt who were in Ravenclaw, just like my sister and my mom's family has always been in Slytherin."
"Then you might go to any of them." Susan concluded. "I think you look like a Gryffindor, you probably fall there!"
"Probably." Elyon said and stroke the fast asleep Salem's black fur. "I really hope so."
The train ride flew through the hours since Elyon found a companionship with Susan, who were very honest and listened at whatever they could talk about. They brought a lot of candy from the lady with the trolley and shared it together. In fact, Elyon still had a lot of chocolate frogs in her pockets, she had saved for last since they were her favorite and she never said no to chocolate.
Once they were getting closer to the destination, both of them changed into the robes. Elyon thought about the change that would become on the black robes, mainly the colors of the ties and possibly the scarves once it became colder, she had been Gwen with those in blue and broze coloring before.
"I'm really nervous." Susan said. "My whole family has been in Hufflepuff, so I'm worried what happens if I fall in something else."
Elyon had honestly thought of such worry the entire journey, even if she didn't spoke much about it. "I think it will go well for you." She said honestly and it was true, Elyon had a feeling Susan might fall to the house her family were from.
But herself? It was still a question mark, Elyon didn't felt either brave, smart or cunning. 'I just want to be someone they can be proud of...' She thought to herself and begged in her mind for what divinity in the world to let her at least fall in Gryffindor. Even if it was a joke, she took Randall's words seriously about being disowned otherwise.
However, now it was time to head towards the school. The train has stopped and everyone were heading to the exit. Elyon spotted Harry, he seemed to get along with a tall boy with red hair and freckles. 'Maybe it's Fred and George's brother?' She thought to herself, tilting her head at the side slightly.
Elyon experienced so many things that she couldn't explain her feelings, it just felt like a big adventure and the day were far from over. She got into the same boat as Susan once they were going to sail over the lake to the castle. Two other boys made them company. The first one were a boy who were slightly on the chubby side, but he wore a goodnatured smile and the other were a thin boy with curly black hair with an amazed expression.
"Hi. Ernie McMillian, at your service." The chubby boy said and shook Elyon's hand in a firm grip. "This is Justin Finch-Fletchley and you are?"
"Uh...Elyon. Elyon Pemberton."
"And I'm Susan Bones."
Ernie smiled. "A pleasure to meet you two. I hope we fall into the same house, I have a feeling we'll become great friends in that case."
"Does it really matter where we get?" Justin asked. "I just hope I'm good enough for any house."
'Personally, I agree with him.' Elyon thought as they sat in their boat, sailing closer to the massive castle with magnificent towers and the fullmoon shone brightly up in the dark night skies. She gasped loudly, as many others of the first-years in their boats.
And imagine, she would spend rest of the year and the next half year at this place. Elyon's heart fluttered as if it sprouted wings and it could fly.
"We're almost there!" Justin whispered excited in Elyon's ear.
She nodded as the boats sailed across the still lake that reflected herself as mirror when she looked down.
"Down with yer heads!" The keeper of keys, Rubeus Hagrid, suddenly shouted and Elyon followed suit, barely in time to dodge the cliffside and she thanked her lucky stars for her quick reaction.
The little boats brought them to a curtain of holly that hid a wide opening in the cutting surface. They slid through a dark tunnel, which seemed to bring them straight under the castle until they came to a kind of underground port, where they ripped themselves out of the boats onto rocks and pebbles.
They were slightly held up when Hagrid inspected the boats so no one forgot anything of worth, which was lucky since a boy named Neville Longbottom got reunited with Trevor, his toad. Then they climbed up once in the cliff after Hagrids lantern and finally came out on smooth, damp grass in the shadow of the castle.
They walked up a stone staircase and shook around the huge gate of oak.
"Y'all here then?" Hagrid called out to the crowd of eleven year olds. "Y'there, got yer toad?"
Hagrid raised an enormous fist and knocked thrice at the castle port.
