Part 2: HOGWARTS
Chapter 4: New Faces, Old Friends
Harry Potter was sitting with his friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, talking, laughing, and eating. Ron had just made a somewhat rude comment about the steak and kidney pie, when Professor Dumbledore stood up to make an announcement.
"I'm sure all of you recall the announcement I made a week ago before the Starting feast."
Harry was trying to remember what announcement Dumbledore was talking about. Something about transfer students, he thought.
"We at Hogwarts are proud to be welcoming four transfer students from Tolblox School of Witchcraft. They should be here shortly and I ask all of you to be patient while we Sort them." he paused a moment, "I am also asking you to remember what I said at last years leaving feast. Now more than ever it is important to be united. Please welcome them as friends."
Professor McGonagall led four girls into the entry hall. Harry noticed that two were older, sixth or seventh year, one was about his age; she was very pretty, and the fourth girl was younger. She had an almost angry expression on her face.
"When I call your name please come sit on this stool and put the hat on. It will announce the name of your house and then please sit at that table."
"Abernathy, Nicole."
She walked over to the Sorting Hat and put it on. A moment later it yelled:
"RAVENCLAW!"
"Jensen, Bettina."
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
"Miller, Crystal."
The girl with the angry expression walked to the stool with the air of someone being sentenced to death.
"SLYTHERIN!"
When she got up, Harry could see that she was smiling a little bit. Did she know anything about Slytherin?
"Miller, Jasmine."
Now it was the pretty girl's turn. Harry waited and after a minute:
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"That's weird," Hermione said over the applause as Jasmine Miller walked over to the Gryffindor table.
"What's weird?" Ron asked.
"Well there were four of them and they each got put in a different house. It's just strange. Oh, look here she comes."
As Jasmine came by, Hermione stood up.
"Would you like to sit down with us?" she asked.
"Oh, thank you." replied Jasmine.
"No problem," Hermione said as she sat down, "My name is Hermione Granger. It's Jasmine, right?"
"Actually call me J.D.," for of course it was her, "My full name is Jasmine Delilah Miller, but I hate Jasmine and I hate Delilah, so everyone calls me J.D. What are your names?" she asked without really looking at them.
"Ron Weasley."
"Harry Potter."
Upon hearing his name, J.D. looked up at him and gave a little gasp.
"Harry Potter," she said, "You're the boy from my vision."
Harry had absolutely no idea how to respond to that. Luckily he didn't have to because J.D. continued.
"Look, I'm not really hungry. It is very important for me to talk to you Harry. Will you come with me?"
Harry nodded. He wasn't sure why, but instinctively he trusted this girl. He rose from the table and Ron and Hermione followed. Looking at them, J.D. nodded, as if to give her assent for them come along. Harry led the way up to Gryffindor Tower and told J.D. the password (Honky-Tonk). They went in side and sat down in the cushion-y chairs in front of the fire place.
* * *
J.D. wasn't really sure where to begin. She was still finding it hard to believe that she had been having visions about the Harry Potter. Somehow, she really wasn't sure how, she knew that Harry needed to know about the visions and she was about to tell a complete stranger more than she had told her best friend.
"Okay Harry, here goes. All I ask is that you let me tell my story straight through, no interruptions. This may sound strange. You see, I am a True Seer." She paused, correctly interpreting the skeptical looks on their faces, "I realize you may find that hard to believe, and I'll prove it to you later. For now just trust me. My sister, Crystal, and I are both Seers. Now, it was three weeks before summer vacation was supposed to end and I was sitting at home in my room when I was struck with a vision. That vision was one of the most powerful that I have ever felt. I saw a lot of green light and heard this high pitched laugh that made me shiver. Then I saw you, Harry, only you were a very small boy. Then as if I was watching the dream in fast forward, you began to grow. The man with the laugh came and shot a bolt of light at you and you collapsed. Then the weirdest part happened: you pulled what looked like a chunk of rock out of your robes and just held it. A light began to swirl inside and it grew brighter and brighter until everything was drenched in that light."
"I don't understand." Harry interrupted, unable to contain himself any longer.
"Wait," J.D. said, "I haven't finished. That was only the first time. I had another vision about you while I was taking the exam for Hogwarts. Luckily it was during the Divination portion so I got full points. Anyway, this time you were locked in a dark room and a robed man came in. Just as you were about to duel, you were struck from behind and someone was shooting purple jets of light at the man." She stopped and looked at Harry. "Okay, I'm finished now, you can talk."
Harry really had no idea what to say to all of this. "Why were you having visions about me?" he asked.
"I don't know. But don't start worrying about it. I don't want you to be constantly looking over your shoulder, I just thought that it was something you should know."
"Yeah I guess I should. Look, maybe you should tell Professor Dumbledore about this." Harry suggested.
"You mean the headmaster? Okay, I will. But not right now. Now I need you to help me find my way around this castle."
"No problem," said Ron, "We know what it's like. You can get very lost around here. Hey, I know! Let's take her to meet Hagrid, Harry."
"Okay, that sounds good. Do you have your schedule, J.D.?"
"Yeah it's here somewhere." J.D. began taking things out of her pockets, "Ah hah! Here it is." She said as she handed it to Hermione.
"Okay you have all of the regular classes with the rest of us Gryffindors, and it looks like you have Divination with Harry and Ron, I have Arithmancy that period and-"
"Wait," J.D. interrupted, "Did you say that I have Divination? Oh that's terrible!"
"Why? With your um, Gift, you'd think Divination would be a snap." Ron asked.
"That's just the problem. I try not to be noticed in that class, but the professors love me for being able to see the future. I can't stand Divination teachers because they are so phony! I mean, I really can see the future and most of them can't."
"Don't worry about it now. If you really hate it you can probably switch out. Come on, let's go visit Hagrid." Harry said.
* * *
As they walked out of the castle to Hagrid's, Hermione asked J.D. about her family.
"Well, it's me, my sister, and my dad. My dad's a wizard and my mom was-" J.D. hesitated.
"What? She wasn't a giant or a veela or something?" Hermione asked.
"No, nothing like that. It's just, well she was a Ravinia." J.D. said.
The boys looked confused, but Hermione was intrigued.
"A Ravinia? Really? I didn't know that there were any left." Hermione exclaimed.
"She was one of the last ones. Crystal and I are supposed to have the ability, but my dad think that we might be female carriers, which is rare." J.D. replied.
"Uh, girls," Ron interjected, "Would you mind explaining? What so special about being a Ravinia and, uh, what is it?
"Oh, Ron, really! A Ravina is, well maybe you'd better explain it J.D." Hermione said.
"Well Ron, a Ravina is a person. They are always magic people. The thing that makes us different it that the men are carriers, they don't have the extra power but they can pass it on to any female children. With women, we have a sort of inner magic. You know, magic without wands." J.D. explained.
"Don't all witches and wizards have that? I mean, we can all do a little bit of that only usually by accident." Harry asked.
"All witches and wizards have a bit, but it requires you to get really worked up. With Ravinias we can do the magic almost subconsciously. Well, not exactly we. With my mother having, er, passed on, I don't know of any others. If either my children or my sister's children end up without the power then I guess my mother was the last. Probably there isn't anyone here who knows how."
"How does it feel to have your little sister in Slytherin while you're in Gryffindor?" Hermione asked.
"It's fine. Why? In fact it's better that she's not in my house, she can't annoy me as much."
"Oh, that's right you wouldn't know. You see Slytherin and Gryffindor are total opposites and always compete. We don't like each other very much. It's strange that you would be in one and your sister in the other." Ron replied.
"Really? Huh, I guess I just didn't think about it. Don't a lot of siblings get put in different houses?"
"It depends," said Harry, "but siblings usually don't get put in opposite houses like that, I don't think."
"I don't think it has happened in a hundred years." Hermione said in her know-it-all voice, "I will have to check that out."
"Hermione, if you don't mind me asking, what's the badge for?"
"This?" Hermione pointed to the shiny metal badge pinned on her chest, "This is my prefect badge. I am a prefect because of my good marks and good behavior, and I tell you it hasn't been easy. Oh, here we are."
J.D. was a bit nervous. She always got a little nervous meeting new adults. With children, they were usually so open and straightforward that J.D. could tell instantly whether or not they could be friends. She was beginning to wonder who Hagrid was, when the door of his hut opened.
"There yeh are! I was wonderin' when yeh'd come to see me. An who's this?" Hagrid asked pointing at J.D.
"This is J.D. , Hagrid. She's one of the transfer student's from America." Harry said.
"Pleased the meet you. I guess you'll be in my class then, Care of Magical Creatures?" Hagrid asked.
J.D. was amazed at the size of Hagrid, but he seemed nice enough. "Uh yeah, I guess I will."
"I think yeh'll really enjoy it. I'm getting some interestin' creatures for this year." Seeing the looks on Harry, Ron, and Hermione's faces he added, "Don't worry, I learned meh lesson. Some people just don't like Blast-Ended Skrewts."
"Yeah I guess so. We'd better get back to the castle. We still have to show J.D. the rest of it. We'll see you later Hagrid." Harry said.
They walked back up to the castle. J.D. was very quiet, but the others put it down to nervousness. She was really more homesick than she was nervous. J.D. had no idea that she would miss Tolblox so much, especially now that she was in a school with boys, but she really missed Serena and Cynthia.
'Just give it some time,' she told herself, 'you only arrived here this afternoon. It'll take some time to find your place.'
She allowed herself to relax and Harry, Ron and Hermione showed her around the school. It really was an interesting place with a lot of stories. Ron was telling her about the time the three of them made a Polyjuice Potion in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom and she just had to laugh. J.D. found the paintings on the walls of the corridors very interesting and she liked to watch the people move from one to another. When it was time for dinner Harry led the way to the Gryffindor table. J.D. sat down with everyone else, but she confined herself to listening and said very little. She occasionally snuck glances at her sister, who was sitting next to a boy with silvery blond hair. She seemed to be listening to him talk and laughed along with everyone else. J.D. wasn't sure, but sometimes she thought she saw the smallest bit of unhappiness in Crystal's eyes. After dinner Hermione showed J.D. to her room and showed her which bed was hers.
"You'll have to excuse me, but I still have a bit of work to do, so I'm going down to the common room. If you need something just come down and get me." Hermione said.
J.D. thanked her and Hermione left. Taking advantage of this opportunity, J.D. took out the gifts her friend had given her before she left. She opened Serena's first; it was a photo album.
"Oh my gosh!" she exclaimed softly.
Inside were tons of pictures of her and her friends. There were some of her playing Quidditch, some of them playing wizard chess together, and even one of them on their very first day of school. Because these were magic photographs, all of the pictures were moving. It made J.D. feel like she was actually back at Tolblox and she started to cry. Wiping tears from her face she started to open Cynthia's gift. It looked like a backpack. There was a note that went along with it, and it read:
Dear J.D.,
I was shopping on Melrose and I saw this cute bag. I know that right now you're probably wondering what's so special about it (do I know you or what?). It is bewitched so that any thing will fit inside and no matter how heavy the object is, once on your back it will feel light as a feather. I hope you enjoy it and Serena and I hope to hear from you soon. Tolblox isn't the same without you.
-Cynthia
J.D. was amazed that her friends would go to all of this trouble, and she was touched. She put the album by her bed and put the bag away in her closet. J.D. felt a little better and decided to take it one day at a time. She wanted to get a fresh start tomorrow, so she decided to go to sleep early. As she slowly fell asleep in the strange, unfamiliar bed, J.D. thought about what her life at Hogwarts would be like. She instantly decided that she would be no one but herself and see how people reacted to that.
* * *
Harry and Ron were playing a game of Exploding Snap in the common room, when Hermione came down from the dormitories and sat down next to them.
"Okay, what do you think about J.D.?" She asked them.
"She seems nice, a little quiet, but that is probably just 'cause she's in a new place." said Ron.
"She does seem nice. There's something though, I don't know what, but she seems different." Harry said.
"I think she just needs some friends. She probably misses her friends at her old school. I want to ask her about that too, American schools are probably very different from ours." Hermione said.
"Hermione, don't start interrogating her! That would probably make her even more uncomfortable." Ron exclaimed as he placed a card on top of the house he and Harry were making.
"Just give her some time, Herm. Then you can ask all of the questions you want. I wonder if she plays Quidditch. You know that Angelina still hasn't picked a new keeper. I don't know what she's waiting for, I mean, she is the captain this year it's her responsibility." Harry said.
When the boys began to discuss Quidditch, Hermione just sighed and buried her nose in a book. She was used to it by now, but she had hoped that having a new girl around would make life more interesting. She didn't get along with the other girls in her year, partly, she supposed, because she had spent the past four years exclusively with Harry and Ron. Not that she minded, it was just that sometimes she wished she had another girl her age to talk to. Maybe J.D. would be that girl, after all it was only her first day. She shouldn't be so quick to judge. With that last thought, Hermione walked upstairs to the dorm and got into bed. She fell asleep quickly and dreamt of things that she hoped would happen.
