Hogwarts: Legends Unite

Part 1, Chapter 7

Elsa

"Pitch Black? You mean the boogeyman?"

"Yes!" I said impatiently. "What do you know about him?"

I was asking Belle, one of our prefects.

"Well, nobody knows how real the stories are. Like with Robin Hood. There may havebeen someone called Pitch Black a very long time ago, but the whole nightmare and fear thing could be completely invented."

"Hmm," I said.

"And then there's the whole business with his followers. In the last century or so, there's been this group of people emerging that follow the Pitch Black of the legends. It's like a cult – they do the most horrible things. Murdering, kidnapping, torturing… you name it. And all in the name of some fairy tale!"

That made me think. Maybe the boogeyman was just a story, but Gothel was one of those crazy followers. But then there was the black sand. Merida and Hiccup hadn't been joking about what they'd seen when they breathed it in. And apparently a bunch of Hufflepuffs had been having nightmares recently. We knew why.

I remembered to thank Belle before I left for class. It was getting hard to remember all those little politenesses these days. Please and thank you and excuse me. My brain didn't have enough space for that when I was worrying about Rapunzel twenty-four seven.

I'd gone straight to the teachers the day she'd disappeared, but they didn't do a thing to help. Evidently, students spontaneously disappearing was not as much of an issue to them as it was to me. All they'd said was "There's nothing to be done, dear. We'll just have to wait it out. Maybe she ran away or something."

But that was before we'd found the sand and the wand. We had evidence to prove she was gone.

After class, I marched straight to North's office. Normally, I wouldn't want to bother the headmaster. But now there was possibly a life on the line.

Merida came with me for moral support, though I assumed she'd probably end up doing most of the talking. She also brought the wand, which I'd forgotten in my haste.

We arrived at the door, and I drew in a breath. We'd decided not to mention the boogeyman. I didn't want to be laughed at. The shiny golden plaque that said "Headmaster Nicholas St. North" was suddenly imposing. I raised my knuckles and gave the door three sharp raps.

Quite quickly, I heard the reply. "Come in!"

My hands were slippery on the doorhandle. I turned it, and pushed the heavy wooden door inwards. Behind it sat Headmaster North, facing us from the other side of his desk. He seemed larger in person than he had at the sorting, though he smiled at us as we shuffled into the office.

"Ah, first years!" he exclaimed happily. "You are all enjoying school so far?"

I mumbled an agreement, and North laughed.

"But of course, this is not why you are here. Please, tell me, what do you want to say?"

I bit my lip, shifting uncomfortably as I tried to work out a way to phrase exactly what was going on.

"Rapunzel's gone," said Merida bluntly. "Our friend Rapunzel, a Hufflepuff, disappeared a few days ago."

North's jolly face grew serious. "Disappeared, you say? Did you tell anybody else?"

"Yes! And no one helped us!" said Merida. "All they told us was that she'd turn up eventually or some rubbish and no one bothered to look into it! It's like nobody cares!"

North tugged on his beard thoughtfully. "I am sorry to hear that. Do you think maybe she ran away?"

"No!" I cried, before I could stop myself. "I mean... no, sir. She's my cousin, I know her. Rapunzel would never run away."

North scratched his head. "Well-"

"But that's not all!" Merida said quickly. "Because no teachers could be bothered to help us, I looked into it myself."

Merida dropped the wand onto the desk. North raised an eyebrow. "What is this for?"

"Evidence," said Merida. "And proof."

She took the first item out of the bag, which happened to be Rapunzel's wand. "I found this by her bed in her dorm. What sort of witch would go somewhere without a wand?"

North nodded, but I noticed his face seemed a little too nonchalant to be taking us seriously. "That is true. But first-years, no offense meant, can be forgetful. Perhaps she was just careless?"

Merida narrowed her eyes, but kept it together. "I also paid a visit to Lady Gothel's office, the last person she was seen with before she disappeared. I found a broken window with a piece of hair caught on it."

North's eyebrows went up in what seemed to be thinly disguised amusement. "Hair?"

"Rapunzel's hair!" Merida scowled. "You know what? I'll move on to the important stuff so you actually believe us. Then you'll be interested."

"Go ahead," said North, a smile twitching in the corner of his mouth.

Merida snatched up a piece of paper from North's desk and shook the wand over the top of it. She explained how she'd found the sand it leading from the dorm to the office.

"Smell it," she said, holding up the dark-speckled paper to him. Looking at bemusedly, the headmaster took a sniff.

His face changed immediately. He jumped back from the desk, eyes wide.

"What is that?" he yelled. "I saw… they were burning, it was-!"

"Your worst fear," I said. "Yes."

North didn't speak for a few seconds. He wiped his hand over his eyes, and tried to steady his breathing.

"Girls," he said finally. "I don't know what that is exactly, but it is very, very, evil magic. And from Gothel's office?"

Merida nodded.

"Imagine! A dark wizard under my own employment!" He shook his head. "I am sorry, girls, but there is little I can do for your friend if she is in the clutches of evil. I cannot possibly imagine what Gothel wants with her."

My hands flew up to my mouth. "Her hair!"

"What about her hair?" North stared intently at me.

"Her hair is magic," I said. "One of those wizard traits some of us get. It glows when you chant a certain spell, and can heal injuries."

"Healing hair..." North looked astounded. "No, my dear, that is not an ordinary magical trait at all! I have never heard of anyone being born with a gift like that before. Your cousin is in terrible danger!"

I must have looked ill at that point, but North wasn't paying attention. He wondered out loud. "Why wouldn't Gothel just cut off the hair and use that instead? It would surely be simpler than kidnapping an entire girl."

"It wouldn't work," I said hoarsely. "Any part of her hair that has been cut loses its power. He - she must have known. That's why she took her."

I rested my head in my hands. How had we gotten ourselves into this mess?

I wasn't crying, but I must have looked like it. North patted me on the shoulder and said, "Why don't you go and take a break in your dorm? I will write you a note to excuse you from class."

I glanced up at Merida as North took out a quill.

"Lucky," she mouthed, though she was still smiling.

North handed me the finished note, and we made our way out the door and back down the corridor. We walked in silence for most of the way, splitting up as we reached the turn off to the Ravenclaw tower.

"I'll see you at dinner, then," said Merida.

"Yeah. Bye."

I watched Merida take off along the hall, her robes billowing out behind her as she half-ran to her next class. I turned towards a different corridor and wove my way around the flights of stairs and doorways until I reached the door with the bronze eagle knocker.

After I'd tapped on it, the eagle opened its mouth and spoke.

"The one who makes me does not need me, the one who buys me has no use for me, and the one who uses me can neither see nor feel me. What am I?"

"A coffin."

I had read several books on riddles after arriving at Hogwarts, determined to never have to admit defeat to the eagle. Sure enough, I was right, and the door swung open.

I stepped into the common room, taking a deep breath. It was cold in there, but I quite liked the crisp air that blew in from the clear sky. All the windows surrounding the room were wide open and the soft white fabric of the curtains billowed gently.

I rubbed my sleep-deprived eyes, glad that

I finally had a good chunk of time by myself.

As it grew closer and closer to Christmas, other kids began to chatter about what they were doing for the holidays. Everyone seemed so caught up in excitement, going on and on about all the presents they were going to get and how happy they'd be to see their families.

Speaking of families, mine owled me nearly every day now. I'd told them Rapunzel had been taken, and I could only imagine how scared Uncle Frederick and Aunt Arianna were. Rapunzel wasn't their cousin. She was their child.

Anna owled me as well, often including small drawings with each letter. They were a comfort, though I was constantly reminded of our predicament whenever Rapunzel was featured, her hair in bright yellow crayon.

It was now a week and a day before Christmas. There was a commotion in a few of the older years about some tournament that was being held in France, though I was told by Professor Potts that it didn't concern me.

Everyone who was going home were packing their trunks, Merida and Jack were among them. I had assumed I would be as well, until the day before the Hogwarts Express was due to leave for London.

It was after dinner, and after the last class of the day. I was sitting in the Ravenclaw common room, when an owl swooped in through one of the windows. I thought nothing of it until I heard my name called.

"Elsa Arendelle!"

I looked up, shutting my book. It was the head girl, Aurora.

"Owl for you."

She prised the letter from the bird's claws and handed it to me. I tore open the envelope as the owl flew back into the night sky.

"Dearest Elsa," it read. "We are so sorry to have to ask this of you, but would you mind terribly if you stayed at Hogwarts over Christmas? We would dearly like to spend the holidays with you, but the circumstances at home are awfully complicated, and we fear we would have trouble looking after you in the current situation. Nevertheless, we hope you have a good holiday season, as does Anna. Love from your Aunt and Uncle."

I looked up from the page. I was disappointed, of course, but I felt oddly relieved in a way, glad I wouldn't have to face the parents of the girl I'd let disappear. I was sure they didn't blame me, but I felt bad even so.

I folded the letter and slid it back into the envelope, turning toward the door to the staircase. I needed to find and tell the others.

Eventually, I found Merida hovering around outside the girls' toilets, waiting for someone to finish up.

"Hi, Elsa," she said cheerfully. She noticed my expression. "What happened now?"

"I can't go home for Christmas," I said sighing. "It's really messed up with Rapunzel gone. My aunt and uncle thought it would be best if I stayed here."

"Oh." Merida looked downcast. "That sucks."

"Yeah. It's okay, though. I'll have Hiccup to talk to."

Merida nodded, then gave a sudden groan.

"What?"

"Ugh, I just realised something. Without you on the train, I'll have to talk to that stuck-up git Jack Overland!"

I cracked a smile, which was undoubtedly her intention. "Sorry."

Merida shook her head, smiling, as one of the other Gryffindor girls emerged from the bathroom. She was short, and had spiky black hair.

"What took you so long?" asked Merida.

"None of your business," said the girl curtly. She turned to me. "Who are you?"

"I... My name's Elsa."

"GoGo."

She shook my hand, then looked back at Merida. "You know; we should probably get to bed if we want to have any energy for the train tomorrow."

"Good point. See you, Elsa."

I waved to Merida as she walked back to the Gryffindor dorm, wherever it was. I stifled a yawn, trying to ignore how much I needed to go to bed myself. But first, I had to find the boys and tell them the change of plans as well. I turned to leave, and-

"What the-?!"

Jack stood in front of me, arms folded and with a stupid smirk on his face. I narrowed my eyes.

"I'm guessing you already know what I was going to tell you, then?"

"About you staying here? Yeah."

I rolled my eyes. "Sneak. Do you know where Hiccup is?"

"Nope. Don't really care either."

Jack turned on his heel and walked away. He was nearly at the end of the corridor when he turned back again. "On second thoughts, he's probably at the library. Isn't that where all the Ravenclaws usually end up?"

"Not all Ravenclaws are the same, Jack!" I yelled after him.

"Yeah, well neither are all Slytherins, and look how many people believe that!"

He disappeared around a corner, and I wondered for a second what exactly that last comment was supposed to achieve. I shook it off, and instead walked to the library. I pushed open the door and smiled. I was met by the dim musty smell of books and dim candle light.

Jack may have been wrong about every Ravenclaw liking the library, but I was definitely one of the ones who did.

I glanced around the mostly deserted room for Hiccup. I soon spotted him sitting in a corner, reading silently. He looked up as I approached.

"What is it?" he asked, closing his book with his finger in it to mark the place.

"Well... it turns out I can't go home for Christmas."

Hiccup blinked. "Oh. Because of Rapunzel?"

"Yeah."

"I figured that might happen."

A small pause.

"So... I guess I'll see you later, then?"

"Right. Bye."

My birthday was three days before Christmas, but I hadn't even remembered it until I got an owl from Uncle Frederick and Aunt Arianna. It contained some money and a birthday card, but the day was soured when I began to contemplate Rapunzel again. Did she know it was it was my birthday, wherever she was? Did she know the date? Would she make it to her own twelfth birthday? Was she even still alive?

I decided I wouldn't say anything to Hiccup, who I was hanging around with even more than usual. I didn't want to make a fuss.

"Hello Elsa! We all hope you have a great Christmas! Everything is going okay at home, though we are all missing Rapunzel. We received the lovely cards you sent, and they are sitting on display on the mantelpiece. Your own presents should arrive shortly, if they haven't already. We miss you very much! Love from Aunt Arianna and Uncle Frederick."

I folded up the letter that had been dropped into my window by owl that morning. I then unfolded the second one, which I assumed was Anna's. I was right.

"Merry cristmas, Elsa! I hope you like all you'r presens! Love Anna."

She had included a picture of a Christmas tree, under which was a huge mountain of presents. Standing to its left was a small person with orange hair, and to its right was a slightly bigger person with faint yellow hair. I took these to be myself and Anna.

I smiled to myself and attached her picture to the string of the other drawings above my bed. I had quite the collection of her brightly coloured pictures now.

Taking a long breath in, I stretched my arms above my head. It was about seven thirty in the morning, and being Christmas Day there was no reason for me to get moving particularly fast. I glanced around the empty dorm. The only other first year Ravenclaw staying on for Christmas was Hiccup, and he of course was in a different dormitory.

I got out of bed slowly, looking across to my trunk. On top of it were three new books, several chocolate frogs, and a shiny pocket-watch; all gifts from my family that had arrived separately by owl. I carefully laid them all on the bed so I could open the trunk to get out my robes. I changed quickly, and then exited the room.

The Ravenclaw common room was quiet as I walked into it, the silence interrupted only by the ticking of the old grandfather clock and the crackling of the fireplace. I plopped myself into a couch beside it and sat, thinking. After such a long time at school and in classes, it was odd to have time to do nothing at all. Odd, but pleasant.

The girls' door creaked, and I looked up to see a second-year girl closing it behind her. Jane, I think her name was. She nodded a friendly hello to me, and then slipped out the main door, leaving to have breakfast.

Shortly after that, the boys' door creaked open as well. It was Hiccup, fully dressed but still bleary-eyed. He was holding a small white envelope.

He was smiling.

"What's that?" I asked.

Hiccup sat down on the couch next to me.

"It's from my dad." His grin grew wider. "He wrote to me!"

I smiled back at him. Hiccup rarely talked about his family, so I wasn't quite sure of everything that went on at home. I was aware that he and his dad didn't talk much, and his dad seemed somewhat disappointed in him. I would have like to know more about it, but on the other hand, I wasn't sure he knew that much about my family either. I could ask him, but I knew what sensitive subjects felt like and I didn't want to offend him. Then again, we had been friends since September, so perhaps I had a right to know. I took a deep breath and asked cautiously.

"So... what exactly is going on with you and your dad?"

Hiccup looked at me. "I was kind of hoping you'd never ask me that."

"You don't have to say anything," I said quickly. "I just thought - well, maybe you wouldn't mind...?"

Hiccup stared at the ground, the grandfather clock seeming louder in the growing silence. His expression gave little away, though he was probably deciding on how much he wanted to tell me. Finally, he raised his head again.

"My dad is huge and strong. He was in Gryffindor. Whenever he played Quidditch, he won. He was head boy. He's the chief of our village..."

Hiccup trailed off, stopping to fiddle with his robes. "And then there's me. I'm tiny and skinny and I can barely lift my own suitcase. I'm not brave, I like reading... We're nothing alike. He tries not to show it, but I'm not an idiot. It's obvious he's disappointed."

I frowned. "He shouldn't be. Curiosity isn't a bad thing."

"We know that." Hiccup sighed. "He sure doesn't. Sometimes I wish, I know I shouldn't, but I wish he wasn't my dad. Or that I could trade him for someone else's. What was yours like?"

"Kind." I said, avoiding meeting his eyes. I twisted my braid around my finger. "Patient. Smart, too; he was the Advisor to the Minister for Magic in Norway. Before we moved. And then… you know."

I swallowed and looked down at my hands. There were crystals of ice forming on my fingertips. My parents had died nearly four years ago, but the image of them lying cold and stiff on the floor was seared into my mind for eternity.

Hiccup cleared his throat. "So. What are we going to do about Rapunzel?"

The ice began to melt. I looked up. "Well. We know Gothel took her, and that Gothel is a follower of Pitch Black, who may or may not exist. Either way, someone wants the power in her hair and probably doesn't mind if she gets killed in the process."

"But," said Hiccup. "We don't know where she is, or whythe power is so important to Gothel."

"So how do we find out?" I asked. "We have no leads, and I seriously doubt that a bunch of first years would be able to locate a dark wizard's hiding place."

"Unless she leaves a trail of that black sand wherever she goes," Hiccup continued. "Then we could just like, follow it and defeat her instantly."

"Brilliant," I said.

We sat in silence.

"Should we have breakfast?" Hiccup asked after a few minutes.

I looked at the clock. "Sure."

We arrived at the Great Hall five minutes later. Upon stepping inside, my lungs were filled with the rich smell of bacon, eggs, fried sausages, and buttery toast.

Along with the food, the Hall itself was a magnificent sight. Small clusters of students, apparently sitting at whatever table they wanted, were chatting amongst themselves. Twelve enormous Christmas trees were dotted around the vast room, filling the air with another scent, the smell of pine. Each tree was a lush deep green, and decorated with sparkling tinsel and shining stars. Strung up across the walls of the hall were leafy bunches of holly and mistletoe, small golden bells and scarlet ribbons.

But the best part of the decorations was the ceiling. I had grown used to the roof of the Hall displaying the likeness of the sky above, but today... today was something else. Today, it was snowing!

Delicate flakes of white were slowly drifting to the floor. I looked up at the bright white clouds overhead, and held out a hand. Several snowflakes landed in it almost immediately, and I examined them closely. They seemed real, but were oddly warm.

"Look at this!" Hiccup breathed. He was holding out his own hand, a collection of snowflakes growing on it already. "This is awesome! It's just like being outside, but you don't get cold!"

I nearly shot a handful of real snow at him right there, but decided against it. It probably wouldn't be appreciated this early in the morning.

The normal house-separation rules didn't seem to apply today, so we ate at the Gryffindor table. A few minutes into breakfast, the usual swarm of owls arrived with the daily post. They swooped into the Hall, dropping letters in a shower of paper.

To my surprise, a piece of paper dropped down in front of me. I jumped, as the owl that had released it landed on the table as well. Hiccup yelped and nearly knocked over his glass. He tried to shoo it away, but the owl dodged his hands and stared at us stubbornly.

I looked back down at the piece of paper, and began picking at the string that was wrapped around it. As I worked at the knot, I couldn't help noticed that the letter seemed to be made from a paper bag. The string was odd, too. It was black and felt like those threads that come loose from your clothes.

Eventually I gave up on the knot and sawed the string in half with my knife. The brown paper unrolled, revealing smudged handwriting.

I squinted at the words, which were carefully printed in neat rows.

Wait. I knew that writing!

Rapunzel?

Beside me, Hiccup gasped. I held the paper up so we could both read it.

Dear Elsa. *being away From hogwarts is making me miss yOu aLL, though i hOpe you don't miss me too much. it Was hard To include cHristmas gifts for you, givEn my current situatiOn, but I WiLl make it up to you when we meet up again*. Kind regards and season's greetings, Rapunzel.

My heart was racing. Seeing her writing and hearing her voice in my head made me long to find Rapunzel more than ever. But the message was perplexing. She had been kidnapped and missing for months, and she sent us a Christmas greeting?

"What the hell is this?" Hiccup asked. "Why didn't she tell us where to find her? Are you sure that's her writing? And what's with the capitalisation?"

I had wondered about that. Rapunzel did make the odd spelling mistake, but this mixture of upper and lower case wasn't like her at all. I read over it again, tracing a finger over each word. Why were there two asterisks in the text? There was no note down the bottom. Unless... they signalled the start and the end of a message… the real message…

"Follow the owl!" Hiccup and I said in unison. Despite it being the easiest code under the sun, we had a moment shared excitement before actually processing the words.

"Oh my gods, the owl!" Hiccup snatched the bird up from the table. "Thank Thor I didn't scare you away."

"Okay, we need to get it to the common room," I said, my mind racing through the logistics of a rescue mission. "And we'll wait for the others to come back before we try anything ourselves. Merida and Jack don't want to miss this, and we can't afford to go without them."

We raced up the stairs, heading for the Ravenclaw dormitories. Hiccup entered first, carrying the protesting owl. I hung back for a second, and looked out the staircase window. The mountains and trees seemed to stretch on forever; it had felt impossible that we would ever find my cousin in such a huge world before. But now we had hope. Nothing could stop me now.

"Rapunzel," I whispered, pressing the letter against my heart. "We're on our way."