The Unwished Companions

"Maia, hurry up! We need to go now – we will be late!" a loud voice rung through the entire house.

Maia ignored her mother's voice, and took some time to adjust her robes and hair in front of the mirror. Still not completely satisfied with her appearance, she let out a huff and abandoned the attempts to straighten out the lower wavy parts of her hair. She slowly strolled over towards the circular table and picked up the cage in which her new pet, a gray long-eared owl she had named Athena, was sleeping.

It was not the pet Maia had wanted, but she had already started to like it. She had wanted to have a snake, but her request was blatantly turned down thanks to her sisters, who insisted that the animal was going to bite them. Not that they deserved anything better, Maia mused grimly, abandoning the room.

Down in the hallway, her family was waiting for her. As always, her sister Charis had no wish to miss the opportunity to hurl some mockery at Maia. "What took you so long? You got scared and decided not to go?" Charis asked, throwing her a wide grin.

Maia rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to make a comment, but her mother briskly interrupted her, "No arguments, we are leaving immediately."

Maia obeyed mutely, frowning as her mother made a shooing motion, rushing them out. Maia threw a brief look at the house-elf, whose tiny wizened face was a frowning mask, and sneered at the creature's attempts to pull the large suitcase over the threshold; the creature was growing old and its magic was gradually growing weaker. Hopefully its head would join the others on the wall soon.

"This is so heavy… Did you pack rocks inside?" Maia's father asked as he tried to lift the other suitcase and inspect its weight.

"No, just some clothes and my schoolbooks," Maia replied innocently.

"Knowing you, you must have tucked in all the clothes you own and almost all the books from our library," her mother remarked, smiling.

Maia remained silent for her mother was not wrong; she liked to have a lot of stuff close at hand, just in case she would need them one day. She glanced at her mother, whose eyes were getting shiny with tears; she was probably going to miss Maia, despite she reproached her a lot.

A frown distorted Maia's face as her mother outstretched her hand towards her, but she silently grasped it. Side-Along Apparition was the worst magic-related experience Maia ever had, but the feeling of being squished through a narrow pipe was an inescapable evil. She closed her eyes and took in a large intake of breath, the feeling of her chest being crushed enveloping her for an instant. As the feeling vanished and got replaced with the equally unwished nausea, Maia lifted up her eyelids and blinked, her look falling upon the new surroundings.

The Muggles were buzzing around, the drone they created a torture for Maia's ears. For an instant she wondered how they were so stupid not to notice the wizards Apparating right in front of their petty noses. She scowled at one Muggle woman as she passed by and cast her a curious look, intrigued by her owl and robes. During that time, her father was scolding her mother for not being careful enough. What would happen if the Muggles saw that? Maia smirked at the thought of them freaking out and probably losing their consciousness in the process.

"This place is full of filth!" she spat with a frown, shaking her head in disapproval as they headed towards the barrier between platforms nine and ten.

"Getting more numerous each year…" her father muttered, looking downcast. One nearby girl was wailing as she scrambled up on her feet, her knees bloodied. Stupid Muggles did not even know how to walk without falling.

"Please, father, allow me to go first," Maia said eagerly, tearing her eyes away from the pathetic child and throwing her father a pleading look. He nodded curtly, slightly pushing her towards the barrier.

Maia enthusiastically rushed towards the barrier, closing her eyes as she approached it. For a moment she was afraid that she was going to break her nose against the wall despite she knew that such thing was impossible. She opened her eyes, and the entirely different, Muggle-free scene presented itself to her eyes. Maia smiled, unable to suppress her happiness, glancing at the huge scarlet train and the crowd around it.

The departure for Hogwarts was a long awaited occasion, especially since Maia's parents forbade her to use magic. According to her father words, a person not of age was not allowed to perform magic outside of school after the arrival of the acceptance letter. In his opinion, breaking the law was something intolerable.

Maia's eyes widened in childish admiration as she slowly took in the things and persons around her. The platform was noisy, full of witches who were happily chattering; some kids were running around, screaming and wailing for their parents, and the owls were furiously flapping with their wings, disturbed by the noise. She sneered at her owl, which was unbothered by the noises, dozing off. That animal was a lazy one, much to Maia's dismay.

Her parents and sisters joined her soon, apparently not pleased with the scenery as much as she was. "Look, there are the blood-traitors Bones!" Maia's sister Callidora exclaimed and pointed at the short man who sported a scraggly beard and a wispy, yellow-clad witch.

"I will go to find you a seat, dear," Maia's father said, taking the cage away from Maia and trying to push his way through the crowd.

That same instant, Maia's mother grabbed her in a tight hug, a small tear rolling down her cheek. "Promise me that you will behave well, and that you will write often," she said in a strangled voice, caressing Maia's hair. "I will miss you a lot."

"I promise," Maia muttered, the sweet rose perfume of her mother invading her nostrils; such drama was not necessary, she was just going to school. Maia could not stand the tears, they were much too pathetic for her liking.

"Don't forget to inform us in which house you are going to be, though that won't be really necessary – I'm absolutely positive that you will end in Hufflepuff," Callidora said with a grin as Maia finally pried herself out of her mother's hug.

"Maybe she'll end up in Gryffindor," Charis added, messing Maia's hair.

Maia quickly ranged herself away, frowning. "I think that Hufflepuff is the only house that will accept me, you know how stupid I'm," Maia remarked sarcastically. She so badly wanted to get rid of her sisters who treated her as an idiotic baby, and destroyed each and every one of her nerves. Thanks Merlin, Callidora was getting married next year, and that was one trouble less for Maia.

Receiving another rib-crushing hug from her mother and two brief ones from her sisters, Maia finally got on the train. The first thing that greeted her as she tried to push her way through the crowded hallway was a provocative laugh, followed by a derogative remark.

"Another Weasley spawn."

Something burst inside Maia's mind at the comment provoked by her hair color. The embarrassment and anger colored her cheeks scarlet as she spun around to face the idiot who dared to provoke her. It was a willowy boy with a narrow face, olive skin and vivid blue eyes. By the look of his robes she concluded that he was also a part of the rich pure-blood society. His lips curved into a smile, which for an unknown reason reminded Maia of a fox.

"Tell me sweetie, did you steal these robes you're wearing? Your father'd need to sell his house to afford them," the boy remarked, cocking his chestnut-colored eyebrows as he pointed at Maia's outfit with a wave of his left hand, a gold ring shining on his index finger.

Maia had opened her mouth to spew out the most offensive retort she was able to come up with, but was blatantly interrupted by the approaching figure of her father. She dared not to make a scene in front of him, her mouth remaining weirdly open. The boy grinned at her expression and walked away, hands in his pockets, before Maia's father reached them.

"I found you an empty compartment near the end of the train, and I have placed your luggage in," he informed her, looking somehow uncomfortable, oblivious to her blazing cheeks.

Maia gave him a curt nod, sadly glancing at him. She had wished to get away from home, but at the same time she had no wish to separate from her father.

Her father had noticed the sadness in her eyes and gave her a warm smile, hugging her. "There is no need to be sad," he said, his voice holding a slight hint of reproach. "I am sure that you will do well without me."

"I will," Maia muttered, doing nothing to get free from his hug, hugging him back strongly.

"Don't start any quarrels, and be polite with your professors," her father said, releasing her. "Choose your friends well, and do not even think about associating with the blood-traitors and the Muggleborns."

"I promise," Maia said briefly, though she felt that her father's last warning was needless. She would never stoop so low.

"I know that you will make me proud," her father stated, patting her head. "I expect nothing but the best from you."

He slowly moved away from her, and they exchanged silent, awkward looks for a while before Maia muttered, "I love you, father."

"I love you too," he replied, his voice somewhat stiff. He turned around on his heel and left the train, not glancing back, not even biding goodbye; Maia understood his decision for delaying would just make everything worse.

After Maia lost sight of him, she found her way towards the end of the train and quickly located the compartment her father was speaking about. As soon as she entered it she leaned through the window, her sharp eyes quickly noticing her family among the throng. A whistling sound pierced the air, and the train had begun to move slowly; she was waving at her family until they disappeared from her sight.

Somewhat disappointedly, Maia had thrown herself down on the seat, resting her head against the chilly window. She had no wish to remain alone, she would prefer to share the compartment with someone for the loneliness was boring in her opinion. She wished to leave the compartment and try to find some company for a moment before she concluded that it would not be the best choice.

In that case, Maia would risk stumbling upon some of her cousins; most of them had no good opinion about her parents anymore, not after what her sister – former sister, precisely said – had done. Letting out a huff, she closed her eyes, preparing herself for a long, and judging by her current position, boring trip.

Tom woke up before the dawn; the past night was almost sleepless for he had anxiously waited for the time of his department. He constantly checked his suitcase in case he forgot something despite he was sure that everything was there already. He needed to do something… anything. He had not owned a lot of stuff so the packing was not really time-consuming. He bought just the most necessary things, including the second-hand books and robes. He needed to save as much money as he could for he knew not when he was going to need it.

The news spread around quickly, and soon everyone from the orphanage knew that Tom was going to leave. Despite he had liked attention, he had no wish to be the main subject of their gossips. He just wished to get away from those dirty brats, even more after he had to return all the stolen things with an apology, thanks to Dumbledore. Tom needed to pay attention to everything he was doing and saying now, which irked him. After the hours of anxious waiting, he went to say goodbye to Mrs. Cole, who was more than happy because he was finally leaving. He could say without second thoughts that the feeling was mutual.

It took Tom some time to arrive at the station, which was not anywhere remotely close to his orphanage. Upon his arrival, he pulled out his ticket and read it again. Platform nine and three-quarters… Tom whirled around, trying to spot such platform. Soon he realized that his previous thoughts were true – it had not existed.

Plagued by rage, Tom smacked the suitcase with his leg. That old fool tricked him… What was he going to do now? He needed to go back to the orphanage and endure Mrs. Cole's mockery. He picked up his suitcase with a frown, trying to come up with a believable lie for Mrs. Cole. Wrapped up in his thoughts, he accidentally leaned against the barrier between the platforms nine and ten.

At that instant, Tom realized that something was odd and out of place: he could not feel anything behind his back, let alone a solid stone. He was not given a chance to ponder the matter, for an instant later his back painfully collided with the hard concrete, his suitcase landing with a thud beside him. Fuming and unable to realize anything, he bolted up and dusted himself, inwardly cursing his misfortune. As he glanced around, the feeling of being unfortunate disappeared quicker than it had appeared before.

A huge scarlet locomotive was waiting next to a platform crowded with people, who were dressed as the ones Tom had encountered in the Diagon Alley. The tributary of thick smoke spread from the engine through the air, covering the scenery with a peculiarly shaped mist. On a large archway that stood in the place where the barrier once was Tom spotted the words he longed to see – Platform Nine and Three Quarters. Everything was real and solid, far away from being an illusion as he was an instant ago forced to believe. A wave of sheer happiness washed over him, but he could not allow to get swept away. He was going to be late.

Not bothering to wipe off the grin from his face, Tom took his suitcase and tried to find his way through the throng. With a pang of light disappointment, he realized that the wizards liked to ram each other as much as the Muggles did, disabling him to reach the train for two minutes. He rushed to board the train and put all the strength he was able to muster into lifting the weighty suitcase up the high stairs. As he went to find an empty compartment the piercing sound of the whistle reverberated through the air and the train gave a quiver before it moved.

Finding an empty compartment proved to be a task harder than Tom could imagine. One of the compartments was occupied by a bunch of older students, one was full of young, giggling girls who were reading some magazines… He let out an irritated sigh and guessed that he was going to spend the entire ride on his feet. He did not wish to get stuck among the bunch of noisy kids.

After ten minutes of standing stock still, Tom concluded that being on his feet for hours was not one of the things he was able to endure. Sighing, he strolled towards the end of the train, checking out all the compartments along the way. As he pushed open the door of the last compartment, he discovered that it was empty except for a red-haired girl who was staring through the window, failing to notice him. Having no wish to remain in the passageway, Tom entered the compartment, somehow managing to tuck his suitcase on to the luggage rack. After all, sharing the compartment with one person was better than sharing the compartment with six persons, or standing as a marble figure.

Tom sat down across the girl, the seat giving a creak, causing her to twitch. With a jolt of disgust Tom instantly recognized the girl as she tilted her head to look at him. It was that same revolting red-head he had met at Ollivanders. Maia Black – or was it Brown? Tom was never quite good at remembering the names of the persons he had no interest in.

"Oh, it is you," Maia said with a smile, as if his presence was just what she wished. "Your name is Tom, right?"

Tom nodded his response, wishing not to engage in a conversation with the curious one. He cast her a brief look and with a pang of envy realized that she had new robes.

"We are finally going to Hogwarts," she remarked elatedly and shifted her legs, her feet kicking. "I have been waiting for this day too long."

Tom remained quiet, casting a look through the window. The scenery was truly beautiful, high trees spread out as far as his sight could reach.

"I can't wait to see it – it is a really magnificent place," Maia went on, ignoring Tom's silence. She obviously knew not how to keep quiet.

"I know, I have read about it," Tom said in a bored voice, hoping to shut her up. He had read everything about the castle in the books he bought, and had no wish to endure her needless attempts to educate him.

"It is good that I'm not the only person who has been reading something before the beginning of the term. My sisters think that it is lunacy," she remarked, a shadow of anger flying over her brows as she mentioned her sisters.

"How does it feel to have siblings?" Tom asked against his better judgment, unable to fight back his curiosity.

"It's not anything special, trust me," Maia replied with a low laugh. "My sisters are older than me and they treat me like a doll. I'm not really fond of them," she confessed an instant later, the sound of her voice showing her honesty.

Maia eagerly talked about the galore of pranks her sister came up with. Tom found himself carefully listening to her speech, with each spoken word happier for he had no siblings. Apparently they stopped at nothing, and the things they did to her ranged from the harmless replacement of her sheets with the ones that tried to entangle her, to the detrimental attempts to permanently transfigure her into a rat. Tom wondered was the last one even possible.

"If someone would dare to do such things to me, he or she would regret it – a lot," Tom stated as she ended her explanations with an aggravated huff.

"Who said they didn't regret it?" Maia asked in a voice that held a light hint of mischievousness, a dry smile twisting her lips upwards. "Trust me, they did – especially Charis. I killed her goldfishes – replaced the water from the aquarium with wine and firewhiskey."

Tom could not sustain his laughter at the words. He could not quite recall did he ever hear about a beverage called firewhiskey, but the idea of inebriated fishes amused him more than anything he witnessed during the last couple of days. Truly, the girl willing to kill animals was a rarity. Most of those brats from the orphanage would cry at the very idea, maybe even Mrs. Cole, though she would rather cry for her beloved alcohol than for the fishes themselves.

"It was priceless – you should have seen how they jerked and flipped over," Maia muttered through her gritted teeth, her thin-boned shoulders shaking with laughter.

For an instant, Maia's wolfish smile, which was nothing but bearing of sharp-looking white teeth, powerfully reminded Tom of an animal. For another weird instant, the girl looked not as repulsive as she did when they met.

"It reminds me of that occasion when I hung the rabbit of one bully from the orphanage," Tom remarked with a self-content grin.

Maia let out a chuckle and opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by a strident bang that sounded from somewhere behind the closed door. Frowning, she fixed the door with a curious look, chewing at her lower lip. She soon returned her full attention back to Tom, changing the topic.

"Did you notice that you have magic before you got the letter?"

"Yes, I noticed I could do certain things – I just didn't know that it was magic," Tom replied, casting another look through the window. The sun was now covered with the grim clouds, rendering everything darker.

"What can you do?" Maia asked another question, fiddling with her sleeves.

Tom frowned slightly for the girl was again getting tiresome. He did not like being questioned, the chain of questions reminding him of a trial. "I can make things move without touching them, for example."

Maia cocked her eyebrows and a harsh grimace replaced her smile as she replied in a somewhat accusing tone, "That's not possible without a wand – you aren't an experienced wizard."

Tom frowned at her, his teeth champing with fury. Did she call him a liar in a way? He tilted his head up to look at his suitcase on the rack, his brows furrowing as he focused his entire attention on it. After a couple of instants, it quivered and glided to the left before it returned back to its place.

"That's absolutely brilliant! I wish I could do that!" Maia exclaimed and cast him an awestruck look, her open mouth forming a weird 'o'.

Tom could not help but grin, flattered with her amazement. Even in the wizarding world he was able to do things the others could not.

"I do –"

Maia's sentence was cut off by the sound of the door bursting open. Tom tilted his head just in time to see a lean boy entering their compartment. There was an aristocratic air around him, and his pale pointed face was finely carved. The general effect would be that of beauty, if his platinum ponytail was not slimed over with some slippery looking yellow substance.

"Can I sit with you?" he asked in a drawling voice, his icy blue eyes shifting from Tom to Maia, a humiliated frown creasing his light brows.

"Sure," Maia replied with a smile, which came off as something derogative as she fixed the boy's hair with an amused look.

Tom was starting to get nervous with the idea of having another companion and he inched away as the newcomer plopped down next to him, trying to wipe the slime off his hair. Tom sneered at the boy's disgusted expression.

"What in the name of Merlin happened to you?" Maia questioned. The edge of her mouth quivered, as if she was doing her best not to laugh.

"Two boys entered my compartment a couple of minutes ago – one of them hexed me – looked pretty scary. They said this was a sign of warm welcome. I concluded that I should get away, and I even left my bloody luggage behind," the boy muttered and pulled out a silken handkerchief from his pocket, cleaning his fingers. "My father's so going to hear about this," he added dramatically, making quite a childish pout.

Tom could not help but feel intrigued with the mentioned hex. It was truly an amusing thing, and could prove to be useful.

"You look familiar to me," Maia stated, bringing her finger to her lips, scratching herself.

"My name's Malfoy – Abraxas Malfoy," the boy introduced himself, twisting the handkerchief between his fingers. "I can't be sure, but I think that we've met before."

Tom was soon forced to sustain the urge to cover his ears and drown out the sound of their cheerful voices as they exchanged hearty handshakes. His two beaming companions knew each other, not for long, but long enough for them to make quite a buzz out of it. They had seen each other once at a tea party held by Hookwoods, or Rookwoods, or something along those lines, and Tom failed to understand why one would be so happy to encounter again an almost complete stranger. It was easy for him to conclude that the wizarding families knew each other well: their fathers seemingly worked together at the Ministry. However, Tom had no time to marvel at the fact that the wizards had their own type of government for they had finally ceased to talk and the boy had shifted his attention to him.

"What's your name?" Malfoy questioned softly.

"Tom Riddle," he replied curtly as he carefully inspected the ribbon in the boy's hair. It seemed to be made out of the finest silk.

Malfoy's left brow lifted a fraction and he reached out to scratch his chin musingly. "Riddle – weird surname. Are you a Muggle-born?" he asked in a voice that no longer had a friendly quality attached to it.

Tom had scarcely succeeded to open his mouth when Maia unceremoniously interrupted him.

"He doesn't know. He grew up in an orphanage," Maia replied and at that instant, Tom wished to choke her, not because of the rude interruption, but because of the repugnantly clear hint of pity in her voice.

"That's bad," Malfoy remarked theatrically, "but I think that you'll know if you're a Muggle-born soon."

"How?" Tom asked, his dark eyes narrowing.

"You'll be able to guess it by the House in which you'll get sorted," Malfoy replied confusingly. Tom could not help but notice the cold looks the boy threw at him, as if the sight of someone who could be a Muggle-born unsettled him.

"I don't understand," Tom said, exasperated with his lack of knowledge.

"There are four Houses at Hogwarts – Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, and Slytherin," Maia had begun to explain, and Tom again found himself interested in what she had to say.

"The ones who're spending their entire lives as bookworms usually end in Ravenclaw," Malfoy said. The frown he made indicated that he was disgusted by the notion of it.

Maia threw a slightly disapproving look at Malfoy before she went on, "Those who aren't good enough for the other houses end up in Hufflepuff. I sometimes wonder do they have any qualities."

"They do – they aren't idiotic enough to get sorted into Gryffindor," Malfoy corrected her with a wide smile.

"Gryffindor is the worst house. Those who support all sorts of riffraff, and are oh-so-noble-and brave, always get sorted into Gryffindor," Maia explained in a derogative voice, her eyes positively glowing with disgust.

"Muggle-borns, blood-traitors, outcasts, beggars…" Malfoy added in a strained voice.

"But how would that help me to find out do I have magical ancestors?" Tom asked, his eyes flickering between them. All he was able to figure out from their speech was the fact that no one sane would wish to get into Gryffindor.

"You see, all the Houses accept the filthy ones, except one – Slytherin. There you won't find anyone with no magical ancestry, nor will you find anyone who tolerates such filth. Just pure-bloods, and sometimes half-bloods, get sorted into Slytherin. If you would get sorted into Slytherin, you could be sure that at least one of your parents was magical," Maia explained ceremoniously, and for an instant Tom could catch a glimpse of what looked like fanaticism in her eyes.

"Just the best ones have the chance to get sorted into Slytherin," Malfoy added with a smirk.

It took Tom less than an instant to comprehend that the wizards, at least the Malfoys and the Blacks, were obsessed with blood-purity. They boasted about the fact that all of their family members were Slytherins, and it was what they wished to become too. Maia was the one who had more radical opinions. She claimed that she would leave Hogwarts if she would get sorted into any other house except Slytherin. On the other side, Malfoy was scared of getting disowned if he would fail to get accepted into Slytherin. Tom had no need to worry about anyone's reaction, but after the words he had heard, he could do nothing but wish to get sorted into Slytherin too.

They proved to be pleasanter companions than Tom expected at first, despite they talked more than it was needed and occasionally threw him what looked like the looks of mockery, maybe due to the fact that he could have been a Muggle-born. These two chatterers were more than willing to spill out all the information about the wizarding world Tom was interested in, and soon he had a clear view of the things he could expect at school. The fact that Tom grew up with the Muggles could be a trouble ("The Muggle-borns are never going to be one of us. They were not brought up in a proper way," Maia stated), but he was not bothered by it. Judging by Malfoy's reaction to being hexed, the wizards were not much braver than the Muggles, and the tricks that worked on the orphans would perhaps work on the wizards too.

Out of them two, Malfoy seemed to be a more likable person. He was funny in a way, and spoke in a lightly dramatic manner at times, reminding Tom of an actor. On the other side, Maia was the louder one, and the chain of her words was hardly breakable. Many of her sentences were followed with smiles, and she tended to speak fast and with passion, shaking her head and gesticulating. Each one of her movements indicated that she was possessed by liveliness, which was irking in a way.

So far, their acts did not truly manage to infuriate Tom, who was highly intolerant of almost everything, except one. As the trolley lady appeared at the door of their compartment, Malfoy and Maia mindlessly wasted a pile of Galleons on the sweets, triggering Tom's jealousy. He frowned at Malfoy who tried to stuff what looked like a big chocolate ball into his mouth. Tom had noticed that Maia did not even eat anything; she eyed the sweets with mild disgust and soon offered him everything she had bought. Perhaps she wasted her money on the sweets only out of a caprice.

Tom was not a person who would refuse anything offered, not to mention that those were sweets he had never seen before. He had soon found out that some of the weirdly named sweets were nowhere as innocent as they looked. Tom had stumbled upon one jelly bean that tasted awfully and smelled like grass ("Every Flavor Beans – don't eat them. I came across a soap-flavored one once," Maia warned him belatedly), thus he lost all the interest in the beautifully colored sweets.

The ride had lasted for hours and soon the pale moon appeared high in the sky, forcing Malfoy and Maia into silence. They seemed to grow nervous as the train approached Hogwarts, bestowing upon Tom the much appreciated quietness. Unlike his companions, the rest of the train seemed to come alive, and the sounds of rushed footsteps and loud voices filled the hallway. There were some thuds, followed by an angry female shout ("Oi, Travers, don't lean out of the window!"), which made Tom smirk. He never managed to understand those who knew not how to behave properly.

Not a lot of the time had passed before a stern voice reverberated throughout the train and informed them that they would be reaching Hogwarts in less than five minutes, ordering them to leave their luggage behind. As the unknown person ended the speech, Maia bolted up, fiddling with her collar in a demonstration of nervousness.

"You two need to change into your uniforms," she stated an instant before she opened the door and disappeared.

Tom frowned at the unnecessary advice she gave them, as if they were idiots. As they started to change their clothes, the train had gradually begun to lose its speed. Tom scowled, trying to stick his arm into the overly narrow sleeve. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that Malfoy, whose robes were as new and shiny as Maia's, eyed his uniform with disapproval.

The train gave out a screech and slammed to a stop, making Malfoy slightly lose his balance. They left the compartment and stepped into the thronged hallway. Tom threw a brief look at his companion, whose skin gained a shade of extraordinary pallor, his forehead shiny with sweat. He tried to understand why Malfoy was nervous as they pushed their way through the noisy crowd, and stepped out on to a small, dark platform. They observed the older students going away, leaving just a bunch of nervous first years behind.

Narrowing his eyes to improve his sight, Tom spotted a familiar bright-headed figure in the darkness. Maia was standing not too far away from them, talking with a tall, beautiful girl with masses of lustrous black hair. An instant later, the girl walked away and Maia spun around, her eyes falling upon Tom. She began to approach them, making him frown.

"Who was that?" Malfoy asked Maia as she halted in front of them, scratching her head.

"My first cousin," Maia replied with a yawn she bothered not to hide with her palm. Judging by the sound of her voice, she was not overjoyed with the encounter.

Tom shook his head and wondered how big Maia's family actually was as he scanned his surroundings. Out of nowhere, a bright beam of light darted in front of his field of vision.

"Someone's coming," Malfoy stated in a trembling voice, pointing at the approaching yellowish light.

The figure soon approached close enough for them to see who it was clearly – a tall, white-haired, shock-headed man. "First years – follow me!" he bellowed, giving the lantern he carried a shake.

All the first years, including Tom and his unwished two companions followed the man silently down the narrow path. Tom could scarcely distinguish the shapes in front of his eyes, everything around him being pitch-dark. Judging by the swearing that came from behind, someone tripped. A couple of minutes later they stopped in front of an enormous lake, its water shining gloomily under the pallid moonbeams. Some students let out amazed sighs and Tom could not help but do the same as his look darted across the lake and landed on the colossal, magnificent castle whose turrets seemed to reach the sky itself, its windows glittering as pale diamonds in the inky darkness, looking way more beautiful than on the book pages.

"Get into the boats!" their guide ordered and with a wave of his hand pointed at the rows of small boats placed by the shore, which Tom had failed to notice at first, his attention drawn by the castle. "Just four of you can fit in one," the man added a warning.

Tom silently entered into the nearest boat, followed by Maia, much to his dismay. One muscular boy with rough features joined them and clenched his fists in what looked like an attempt to calm himself down. Malfoy, who until now trailed behind Tom, remained stock still by the shoreline even after all the students occupied their places.

"Come on, lad, hurry up! We can't wait the entire evening," the shock-headed man impatiently warned him.

Malfoy let out a huff, casting a terrified glance at the lake's surface as he joined Tom and Maia, his legs trembling. He sat down next to Maia, almost falling on top of her in the process.

"Why did you wait so much?" Maia asked, giving him a confused look.

"I'm afraid of water," Malfoy murmured, his ears turning bright red as Maia sneered. Tom scarcely managed to subdue his laughter at the revelation of such a stupid, pointless fear.

The boats moved almost in unison, and slowly glided across the dark water, the smoothness of which could only be compared with silk. Maia's hand reached out to touch the water, but it remained frozen in the air as Malfoy shrieked, "Stop! Don't do that! There are monsters inside!"

"I don't think there's anything in the water. I doubt the staff would put us in danger," the boy who joined them and kept silent until now remarked, giving Malfoy a compassionate smile.

Malfoy just shrugged and eyed the water with suspicion, as if the boy's words that made sense more than his fear failed to reach his ears. Luckily for Tom who was by now agitated with his childishness, he remained silent as the boats approached the cliff on top of which the grandiose construction stood.

"Bow down your heads!" the voice of their guide rung through the night.

They all rushed to obey him and boats, one by one, passed though the dense ivy curtains that covered the large opening in the jagged cliff. The lightless tunnel the boats sailed into soon guided them towards the underground harbor, where they abandoned their boats. Tom tried to scan the group around him and conclude how much students were there as they followed the man across the pebble road, down the opening in the rock and on to the smooth lawn.

The great castle that when observed from the distance seemed to be something unreal, stood in front of them in all its glory, its lights breaking through the veil of darkness and illuminating their road. A wave of weird, warm happiness spread over Tom as he watched the building in awe, trying to memorize every detail. With certainty he could tell that it was the most beautiful building his eyes ever had the luck to see, poignantly breathtaking.

His legs were trembling with excitement he, despite all the efforts, was not able to control as they climbed up a flight of marble stairs and halted in front of the massive doors made out of the finest oak. Their guide lowered his lantern and looked at them over his shoulders before he knocked at the doors a couple of times, stepping back. For an instant Tom had an impression that no one was going to open, but sooner than he expected, the massive doors swung open, allowing the lights to blind their eyes used to the darkness.

"Blood-traitor," Malfoy mumbled as Tom blinked under the wave of light and tried to distinguish the features of the man who stood at the doorway.

It was that old fool Dumbledore, a warm smile etched on to his face. He spread out his arms, and welcomed them in a voice much too hearty for Tom's taste. By now, his heart was threatening to jump all the way into his throat, as yet again he found himself unable to believe how lucky he truly was.