'Amictos School of Magic is completely different' was the first thought that Jocelyn had when she landed in the school grounds through the portkey given by the headmaster. She landed on one of the bridges across a wide river that separated the two halves of the school. Behind her was the plane where classes were held and which housed the teachers, the Imparatos. And in front of her was the plane which was the residence for the students, the Allievos. But she could not see either of the planes for the dense line of tree that stood on either side of the river.

She shrugged to herself and went ahead through the trees on to the students' residence, which was also called Osada. The other side of the river was called Osakond. The moment she cleared the trees, her eyes widened in astonishment. In front of her was a vast plane; she could see various cottages to some distance. There was a huge mountain on the back and surrounding the plane. The plane itself was beautiful and green, with trees and plants scattered around. She could also see numerous small cottages all through the plane and they were not ordered. Each cottage had a different style; one looked like a hut with a garden in front of it, one had two stories with trees all around, one was like a small country house with a wooden seating to in front of it, one was very wide and with three stories, and so on; all built of stone. The headmaster had said that there was large clearing in the middle, called Okrag, where the Allievos gathered for dining and for get-togethers. Usually functions and festivals too were celebrated there. This clearing was marked by stones surrounding it and cottages were not allowed there.

There was a strange system in Osada; you are responsible for your own residence. You have to build and protect your own cottage, though its dimensions were limited. Every cottage was built on roughly the same area, but of different structures and with different styles; they conveyed the nature and preferences of the residents. Also, another fact in Osada was that there was no necessary number of inhabitants for any cottage. A single cottage could have a single resident or a whole family or a circle of friends, all was up to preference. For the time of your education at Amictos, your cottage was yours; you could reside in it anytime and use it however you want. Each Allievo was allowed one assistant if they wanted, be it as a helper or a guardian. But there were rules to that too. The assistant should be of help only in the Osada and only in defence. They were not allowed to instigate an attack in anyway. Jocelyn had decided on bringing Dobby with her, but she had not yet called him. She wanted to survey the area first as there were nobody wandering around right now. The school was to start in a week, and usually the Allievos arrived a day or two before the start, though there was no such rule; Allievos could stay however and whenever they like as long as they had a cottage.

Jocelyn walked through the plain. The cottages present belonged to Allievos, and when they graduated, these would be demolished. That was the way of Osada. She did not want to live in the front and be visible to all, she had enough of that in her life; nor did she want to live so isolated that she would stand out like a sore thumb and attract attention. So she walked a bit to the back of the plain, back enough that Allievos won't notice her, but still there were some cottages around there. There was a stone cottage there, which had no decorations. Jocelyn assumed that the resident won't be bothered much with her and decided to build hers there.

So after she had chosen her spot near that cottage, she closed her eyes, concentrated on her magic and the image of the cottage, and whispered as her headmaster had instructed, "Osada, as an Allievo of Amictos, I have come to learn. I plead you, take my offering and let me be a part of you."

She envisioned and contributed to the land some of her magic. The land was sentient. Headmaster had said that the land would prevent them harming each other and punish the students if they did something against the school and its rules, and if someone was expelled, their cottage would collapse. It also protected the school if they were ever attacked; that had happened a century ago. She could see in surprise as a stone cottage appeared, complete with the small garden area by its side which was surrounded by trees and a chimney on the top. Inside the cottage, the space was very much constricted, with a hall, a washroom, a kitchen, an elf-room, and three bedrooms, all very small. She had wanted it in this structure, for a home like feeling and to have rooms to spare if her friends visited her. Then she settled down to draw runes around each small room; runes she had learnt from a book about space expansion. It was nearly noon by the time she finished engraving the runes on the walls and the floor with a rune-knife. Then she stood in the hall and directed magic into the runes. By the time she finished, her cottage was a spacious house from the inside.

She had drained a lot of her magic and was exceptionally hungry now. So she decided to go hunting for food. But first,

"Dobby! Fawkes! Hedwig!" She called. They instantly appeared in the hall. "What do you think? Any changes needed?"

Dobby bounced around, clapping, "Oh this is beautiful, mistress. Dobby has his own room. Mistress' room is nice. Dobby likes it. Dobby will be happy to keep this place clean. But there no furniture. Will mistress sleep on floor?"

"Ah no, the furniture we bought is in the trunk. I am glad you like it. What about you two? Where would you like the woodhouse that we planned?"

Hedwig trilled at her, which gave her a feeling of gratitude and satisfaction from her. She flew around and finally settled on her location as the wall opposite the window in the front hall. Jocelyn concentrated and two stone bird-houses appeared, the same as they had planned.

"Okay, where do you want me to help?"

The three companions started ushering her away, telling her that they want to surprise her. She shrugged her shoulders, "So I'll leave the three of you to unpack and decorate the house. I will explore around and bring back something to eat."

She left the house with her invisibility cloak and a carry bag. The Allievos that were staying had come out by now and were mostly wandering for their lunch towards the Okrag. She followed them silently.

Okrag was an area governed by elves. They were responsible for the seating arrangement, supplying the food, placing and removing the dishes, taking orders from the Allievos, and packing and delivering the food if that was asked for. There were hundreds of elves there. And the area itself was big, with seating arranged in circular tables of various sizes, placed randomly throughout Okrag. Elves were popping in and out as Allievos arrived and left, doing the tasks as necessary. The area itself was open, but she could feel the difference the moment she stepped inside the circle. There seemed to be a ward which kept the insides dry and free of dust and bugs. In fact, she could bet that even a snowstorm or hail couldn't get inside. Another enchantment that was prevalent was that the moment she entered, she knew the menu of the meal. As there were not many Allievos, she was not noticed much as she took off her invisibility cloak. Her thick and form-hiding robes and her hair seemed to have helped. An elf popped to her.

"What would you like to eat today, miss?"

"Could you please pack me meal for two, with a little of everything? And please add two extra bacons."

"Yes madam. Would you like to take it from here or should it be delivered to your cottage?"

"The cottage please. Does that mean I did not have to come here if I need a delivery?"

"Are you new? The new students start coming only from the welcome ceremony day." The elf asked, surprised.

"Yes, I am new." She did not add anything else and the elf did not pry.

"Very well! Yes, you have to come the first time for us to know your presence here. Then the next time onwards, anyone needs just say 'I would like to order my meal now' and we will find them."

"Okay, thank you. I am Jocelyn. Nice to meet you. "

Jocelyn smiled and turned to leave, draping the cloak over her. She missed the surprised and then shocked eyes of the elf. Assured that her room mates would get the food, Jocelyn wandered around. She was careful to keep out of way from colliding into anyone. There were many cottages spread out, and arrival of new Allievos would only add more. After looking around for a while, she returned to her cottage. Dobby and the phoenixes had outdone themselves. The hall was comfy, with a blue cushioned sofa set with a tea table placed facing the door. There was a window on the right side with blue soft curtains, overlooking the cottage garden. The room had been decorated too. There was large scenery above the sofa of a calm beautiful beach. On the left wall were the two houses of the phoenixes, in the image they shared with Dobby. Those two were in the shapes of bird-houses, made of stone to mix with the room and had open fronts with curtains.

"Hey, what are the curtains for?"

The two birds looked at her smugly and flew to their bird-houses, where they pulled the curtains like they were closing the doors. Then Fawkes peeked around from the side of the curtain, still looking smug, and trilled teasingly. Dobby laughed.

"They say, mistress, they need privacy too."

Hedwig had come out by now and landed on her shoulder, trilling comfortably. Dobby translated again.

"They not want be on show for everyone, they don't want you feel uncomfortable inviting anyone either. They also wants protect you, with surprise attack if needed. Phoenix Hedwig tells you to cast a no-notice charm on houses, so they be invisible unless they allow so."

Jocelyn was touched, "Thank you. The hall is beautiful. I like how you added the trinkets, flower-vases and hangings in the room; make it feel like home. You three are the best."

Dobby clapped his hands, smiling wide, "Come come miss, see how we did inside."

There was a door on either corner in the wall behind the sofa. They entered the right one which led in to the kitchen. It was well furnished now. A door on the right side in the kitchen led into the garden, which they had yet to plant. The garden was surrounded with tall trees and there were two long wooden benches on a side, one as a seat and another as a table. She decided to place runes to protect the garden later. There was a door on the left side too, which opened into a hall surrounded by rooms. These belonged to the bedrooms, the left door of the front room and a washroom. Dobby had laid a comfy brown carpet in the hall and placed a wooden dining table in between which seated six. The bedrooms were all furnished with beds, a wardrobe and a side table with chair. Her room had, in addition, pictures on her wall and other trinkets spread around. Her wardrobe was stocked and her desk was equipped. All in all, her home for the coming days was beautiful.

The starting days passed comfortably. Jocelyn had a note from the headmaster Grendall on the first day, welcoming her and inviting her to get settled. He stated that her private lesson with him would be discussed after classes started. Her companions seemed happy to live with her and the phoenixes were discreet in exploring the school and enjoying the nature. Jocelyn sent her friends letters in the night, describing Amictos and Osada to them. The phoenixes and the elf were happy to deliver them, though she warned them to check for privacy before delivering them. Her friends replied that they were happy for her, and in turn wrote her back describing their return to Hogwarts, announcement of Triwizard Tournament, the ex-auror Moody as their Defence Against Dark Arts professor, and reactions of Dumbledore. Apparently, their headmaster was frantically searching for her, and had personally interrogated them regarding her. Thankfully, Dobby's memory hiding held strong. The headmaster was unable to read any meetings except the one of Diagon Alley, that too only till the Apparition. He once found the letters too, but since they were charmed only to their eyes, he only saw some notes on spells and disregarded them. The Beauxbatons and Durmstrang were the two schools participating in the tournament and they would arrive before Halloween. They missed her, and the twins were still playing pranks, now as advertising for their soon opening shop. They thanked her profoundly for the money and joked that they would make her proud. All in all, Jocelyn was happy to have not lost touch with them and was anxious about what she was about to face.


Author's Note:

So, how is Amictos? Please do tell how you feel the school is.

Coming up: A long chapter, all about the first day for new joinees at Amictos.