After a hero's feast at the Great Hall, the Raiders dispersed to study for their upcoming finals. Sammy found Tanya, and Tanya led them to the deepest, darkest dungeon in the castle. It was a small dank room with ancient carvings on the wall and a crude hearth cut out of the rock.
Tanya bent over the hearth, sprinkled a few drops of a potion onto the ash, whispered a few words, and instantly a fire leapt up and lit the whole room.
"It's ready," Tanya said.
"Ready for what?" Sammy asked.
"I wasn't talking to you."
The coals in the fire started to swirl around. The fire belched smoke, choking out the light. Out from the inky black air stepped a dazzling woman with a shock of red hair.
"Master," Tanya said, kneeling before the woman.
"So this is the one who the Potter boy trusts more than anyone?" the woman asked.
"Uh, Jerry is my brother, if that's what you mean," Sammy said.
"I'm sorry we've had to trouble you, my dear," the woman said. "If Tanya could just do her job, it never would have come down to this."
"Her job?" Sammy asked.
"Who was trying to pit Derek and Jerry against each other? Who was it that suggested the mattress slide race that destroyed the castle's valuables? Who greased the steps? Who broke the magic fuel line on Hagrid's bus? Who gave Derek Li's father the tip about a 'sure bet?' And yet Hogwarts still stands. No thanks to Draco Malfoy and Lee Jordan," the woman said, spitting when she said their names.
She shook her head, then turned to Sammy.
"But you, you are going to fix everything," the woman said. "And in return, you will get your magic. No one's going to get hurt. You're just going to ensure that the Hogwarts Raiders lose the championship match, forcing Hogwarts into bankruptcy."
"I don't understand," Sammy said. "Who are you, and why do you hate Hogwarts?"
"Me? You can't tell? I am Ronnie Weasley," Ronnie said, shaking Sammy's hand. "And this school ruined my life. You'll never read this in a book, but I was made headmaster after McGonagall. It was about to be announced officially, when the book people ruined everything. JK Rowling was able to accept giants, gnomes, and potions that turned Hermione into a cat, but when I said I wanted to be headmistress, that was too unbelievable? I buried Ron in my early 20s and became Ronnie. JK Rowling refused to write that in her books. Hogwarts and the other wizards turned their backs on me. The faculty voted me out. Even Hermione refused to acknowledge me. There's no one who loved this school more. Now, it's time for it to come down."
"No, that can't be right," Sammy said. "Hermione has been so welcoming. She wouldn't tolerate that."
"Maybe not now," Ronnie said. "But it's too little, too late."
The Ron Weasley portrayed by JK Rowling was always fumbling and tripping over himself, but Ronnie was so confident. She exuded power. Sammy was scared, but in awe of the woman before her, too. Sammy was just a first-year student, but she knew the potion and teleportation spell that brought Ronnie through this ancient hearth must be powerful magic. The walls of Hogwarts were charmed each year to prevent such break-ins.
Sammy wanted a taste of that magic.
"I'll do it," she said.
"Good girl," Ronnie said. "Take this potion. On the morning of the championship game, go to your brother's room. Slip a few drops in his mouth while he sleeps. Be careful not to put too much in. All it will do is slow his reflexes ever so slightly, ensuring that he cannot catch the snitch, thus causing the team to lose, Hogwarts to fall into financial ruin, yada yada yada. Don't worry about you and Jerry. I'll set you up in the finest magic school on the continent, and you'll get a special draught. It won't make you a full witch, but it will give you enough to get by on. It's powerful magic that not even Hermione knows about."
Sammy chewed on her words like they were a piece of cud.
"Why can't Tanya give him the potion? Jerry has a crush on her. He would do anything for her."
Tanya smiled, but turned her gaze to the floor when Ronnie looked at her.
"That's the problem. Tanya loooooves Jerry," Ronnie said, mockingly. "Don't you know? The strongest magic comes from love. In her hands, that potion will be rendered useless. But you. You are like me. You love magic more than anybody — even your own brother."
The words from Ronnie stabbed like swords, but even Sammy knew there was some truth in them. She was the one who stayed up late in bed, bringing a flashlight under the covers night after night to read and re-read the Harry Potter series. She thought Hagrid had come to Iowa to tell her that she was the one who had magical powers. Why did Jerry get everything? It wasn't fair. They never would have gotten this far in the tournament without her coaching. So what if she slipped the potion to Jerry? He would never know. They would go to a different wizarding school. She would have magic. Win-win, right?
"You got a deal, Ronnie."