"This is bad!" Mr. Miller paced back and forth. "Are you sure he's coming?!"

Elisha sat next to Kara, keeping vigil at her bedside. Three days had passed since Mr. Miller struck her and she hadn't moved. He had received a black eye when Mr. Miller found them in the backyard, screaming for their help. Elisha stifled his tears and silently prayed.

"Of course he's coming!" Mrs. Miller hissed back. "Do you think I wouldn't contact him in the first place if I didn't think he was coming?! Have a little more faith-"

"If we're accused of murder-"

"Of course not!" Mrs. Miller growled. "Even if we are- We have the murderer right here!"

She pointed at Elisha, who by this point was sobbing his eyes out. Frost trickled around him and covered the nightstand and was steadily covering the bed. Mrs. Miller shrieked.

"Boy!" Mr. Miller hit him on the back of the head. "If you keep doing that you'll be sleeping outside!"

Elisha rubbed the back of his head and did his best to calm down, breathing deep between tears. A knock came from downstairs, grabbing their attention.

"It's him," Mrs. Miller said and promptly left the room. Elisha kept watching over Kara, watching her jagged and shallow breaths.

When Mrs. Miller returned quickly with a tall, hooded figure behind her, Elisha looked up and gasped. The figure pulled back his hood to reveal a pale man with handsome features soft green eyes, and silky brown hair that draped over his pointy ears. He dropped his cloak, leaving it crumpled on the floor, he looked around the room. The man looked like someone from a fitness magazine, his deerskin clothing stretched over his gigantic chest and his toned abs.

"Allow me to introduce myself," The beautiful man turned to Mr. Miller and Elisha. "I am Koenraad of-"

"We don't need the introduction," Mrs. Miller sighed. "Just- please save my niece."

Elisha gawked at her, he never heard Mrs. Miller say please to anyone before. Koenraad nodded and moved to Kara's bedside across from Elisha. He got a better look at the stranger's face, he had high angular cheek bones and the greenest eyes. Along the top of his forehead, near his hairline, a long scar. Koenraad noticed him staring and smiled kindly at him, Elisha blushed and hid his face.

"You were lucky it wasn't her heart." He began. "For the heart is not so easily changed, however, the head can be persuaded a little."

"We don't need an explanation-" Mr. Miller stated. "Just fix her."

The man hesitated. "Judging by the amount of time the ice in your niece's head has been left to fester, there are some memories that were permanently damaged, and she may suffer from chronic headaches from time to time-."

"But she'll be fine?" Elisha asked. "She'll be the same-"

"How much is this going to cost?" Mrs. Miller sighed.

"There is no charge," Koenraad sighed. "Simply saving a child's life is payment enough-"

He drew a blue light from Kara's head and split it into two lights. One lingered and floated above her, while the other raced up to the ceiling before exploding into snowflakes. With a wave of his hand, the blue light that had stayed formed into Kara's memories. It was like Elisha was there, seeing what Kara had seen. Snowboarding in the backyard, himself launching Kara through the air with his power, and the images kept coming. Every time that they had played around with his powers.

"I recommend we remove the memory of your mag- power just to be safe." With a wave of his hand, the memories switched into normal magic or snow activities that were enjoyed by normal people. "But don't worry… I'll leave the fun."

He plucked the floating memories out of the air above Kara and began directing them back down into Kara's head, who gave a slight smile and sighed when he did so. Koenraad patted her softly on the head.

"She's going to be fine." He smiled, getting a sigh of relief from everyone.

"But," Elisha leaned in towards her. "She won't remember my powers?"

"Listen to me, little Snow. Over time, your power will only grow," Koenraad explained. "Could I have a minute with the child? Alone?"

Mr. and Mrs. Miller exchanged a look and merely shrugged in response to his request. Mrs. Miller came over and picked Kara up, cradling her softly in her arm. Mr. Miller waited for her in the doorway, giving Elisha a glare before shutting the door, leaving him alone with Koenraad.

"As I was saying," Koenraad stood and made his way around the bed, sitting next to Elisha. "Your power will only grow- there is great beauty in it but also serious danger-"

Elisha felt a twinge of fear, if it grew then that would mean more accidents like this- meaning Kara would be put in more danger. The temperature of the room dropped swiftly, Koenraad began to shiver a little.

"Can't you remove my power?" Elisha broke the silence, eager to make sure he couldn't harm anyone else.

"I'm sorry, little Snow," Koeanraad gave a weak smile. "That I can't do- just like your beating heart, it is a part of you."

"But I'm afraid of what I might do." Elisha was near tears. "Don't you have anything?"

Koeanraad shifted uncomfortably, he looked as if he was debating something. Koenraad finally sighed, got out of his chair, and kneeled down Elisha's level. He ran his elegant hand through Elisha's platinum blond hair.

"Close your eyes," he whispered softly.

Elisha did as he was told and felt a warm feeling across his temple as Koenraad recited something strange. Elisha could see things in his head… him older than he is now, as a teenager or an adult- as quick as the image came it passed quickly before him. Until they settled and that's when he saw it.

"Tell me what you see, child-"

Elisha focused, furrowing his eyebrows together as images flashed by him.

"A stone fountain- a winter night," he said, gripping the sheets hard. "People stare at me in fright-"

"An angry mob- jagged ice- being dragged away to a stake," He felt tears coming down his cheeks. "A man with a lit torch- Everyone staring- It's all because of me- they look at me and see-"

"What?"

"A-a monster-"

Elisha opened his eyes and looked to Koenraad.

"Then little snow," he said. "If you don't learn to control this, fear will be your enemy and death the consequence."

"W-what-" Elisha trembled, ice began to cover the room.

"You must hide it-" He rummaged through his stachel, taking out a pair of gloves. "I don't usually recommend this but- put these on."

Elisha did as he was told, hesitantly reaching out for the gloves presented to him and carefully putting them on, he didn't feel any different.

"These gloves will help keep your powers contained," he said. "It will limit your skin to skin contact with people, I will inform your caregivers- remember to Conceal, Don't Feel, don't let it show."

"Conceal-" Elisha breathed. "Don't feel. Don't let it show."

Koenraad stood, ruffled Elisha's hair and started to leave the room. Elisha was nearly overjoyed when he noticed the ice on the walls was slowly starting to retreat. Koenraad stopped at the door.

"Remember child-" He turned to him. "If you ever remove those gloves for whatever reason; self defense or by accident- never aim for the heart."

Elisha jolted awake, laying in a white linen bed. He groaned as his eyes adjusted to the brightness around him and the smell of a hospital further overwhelmed his senses.

"Oh thank goodness!" He heard Mrs. Diggory exclaim. "Amos! He's awake!"

Elisha's vision settled, Mrs. Diggory sat beside him with Mr. Diggory not far behind her. Where they were at was beyond him. He massaged his forehead and stretched, he felt so tired.

"W-what happened?" Elisha groaned, making sure his gloves were still on.

"You fainted-" Mrs. Diggory said, setting up the pillows behind him. "Gave us all a fright- We're in a guest room in the Leaky Cauldron- A Medi-wizard stopped by for a look at you"

"Mediwizard?" Elisha sat up, feeling a little better. "Is that some sort of doctor?"

"Yes," Mrs. Diggory said, pouring a glass of water. "They took some blood samples and ran some tests."

Elisha thanked her for the glass of water and downed it in one big gulp. He massaged his throat, still feeling thirsty. Mrs. Diggory poured him another glass and he continued to sip water while he asked more questions.

"Where's Kara?" He asked. "Is she alright?"

"She's with Cedric and his friends at the ice cream shop," Mr. Diggory sat next to him. "We had to pry her off you… you gave her- well, all of us- a big scare."

Elisha cringed slightly at the thought of Kara crying over him. Last time he fainted is when Mr. Miller hit him too hard when he was pruning the shrubs. The neighbors could hear her screaming for him four houses down.

There came a knock at the door and a man in white robes walked in, looking over some paperwork. He looked slightly older than Mr. Diggory, his hair was a pepper gray, and he had a slightly wrinkled face.

"Ah!' He said, flipping through the papers. "You're awake- good, good sign-"

"Well did you find what the issue was?" Mr. Diggory asked, seemingly almost ignored by the Mediwizard who simply mumbled a small yes as he began flipping through his papers again.

'Yes- Yes I did-" He said. "I'm just trying to figure out what the muggles call it- have you always felt lightheaded after eating a large amount of sugar?"

"Um- yes?" Elisha answered. "Only because I don't eat it often… I didn't eat a lot- I mean sweet things growing up."

"Hmmm yes," he continued, still flipping through the papers. "And I'm guessing eating a light amount of sugar gives you energy when you feel down?"

"Yes…" Elisha said. "How did you know?"

"Ah!" He exclaimed, pulling out a piece of paper. "Found it!"

He handed the piece of paper to Mr. and Mrs. Diggory, Elisha sat up to get a better look at the paper. It was labeled Mundane Pancreatic Disorders: What they are and how to treat them. There was a long list of what he assumed was pancreatic disorders, labeled next to some ancient looking diagrams of the human body.

"What does this mean-" Mrs. Diggory began.

"I'm afraid, young man," the healer interrupted. "You have something called Type-1 Diabetes, a Muggle illness."

Elisha could feel the color drain from his face. He didn't really know much about diabetes, but he knew half the people living on the Millers' street, especially the older ones, suffered from something called Type-2. He knew it had something to do with sugar and something about taking insulin.

"You just suffered from a sudden spike in your blood sugar levels," he said. " Which caused a diabetic seizure- that is to be expected when a diabetic has a large peanut butter chocolate chip sundae."

"Oh…" Mrs. Diggory trailed off in a hush. "I-I'm so sorry Elisha-"

"It's fine," he gave a small smile, the last thing he wanted was her feeling guilty. "You didn't know-"

"While we are able to treat mundane muggle diseases, we cannot, however, completely cure genetic disorders. Instead, we can suppress them, as if they're being locked away, with potions." The Mediwizard interrupted.

"Potion?" Elisha swung his legs on the side of the bed. "I won't have to take insulin?"

"Insulin?" The mediwizard raised his eyebrow. "What on earth is that?"

"It's-" Elisha tried to explain. "It's a shot diabetics take to control their blood sugar."

"Why on earth would I give you a shot?" The mediwizard asked. "The potion will make you relatively normal, you can go on eating what you like- a shot- really!"

"So he'll be normal?" Mrs. Diggory asked.

"To an extent, with proper nutrition and taking a potion every two days, he'll be fine." He explained.

"So no blood sugar meter or insulin shots or pumps?" Elisha asked. "Does the potion act like insulin?"

"Again with the insulin and the shot- I guess in muggle terms it does," he explained. "It just suppresses the illness for two days before you have to take another potion"

The healer handed Elisha a small vial filled with a white liquid. He ushered Elisha to uncork the lid and drink. Elisha cautiously brought it up to his lips and drank. He nearly choked as he did so, it was revolting and smelled… It smelled like motor oil. He downed the entire thing and coughed, grabbing the glass of water and downed it.

"What did you expect?" The mediwizard sounded a little annoyed. "That it would taste like candy?"

"Y-you could have warned me- peckerwood!" Elisha growled, his accent coming out in his anger.

"What was that?" The mediwizard furrowed his brow at him. "Is that some sort of insult?"

"Ah bless your heart-" Elisha sighed. "No- um it was a cough."

The looks on Mr. and Mrs. Diggory's faces were not pleasant, something told him they knew exactly what he had just called the doctor and what he meant by 'bless your heart'. The mediwizard went back to his papers.

"Anyway-" He continued. "I'll inform Madam Pomfrey about your condition so that you can have a supply of potions to take while you're at school and- Oh yes I forgot."

He pulled out another potion from his robes, this one was pink and had a candy label on it. Elisha frowned, he really didn't want to drink another thing that this man offered him. He handed the pink potion to the Diggorys.

"This one is to bring your blood sugar up," He explained. "If you ever overdose on the other potion- any questions?"

"Um…" Elisha began.

"Great!" The mediwizard swiftly left. "Have a great rest of your day!"

He left the three of them alone in silence, Elisha frowned and hoped he never saw the man again. But that was the least of his troubles, he could feel Mr. and Mrs. Diggory staring at him.

"Peckerwood?" Mrs. Diggory asked. "So that's where Kara learned the word?"

"Hah-" Elisha got to his feet, feeling much better. "More like that's where I learned the word."

"Great…" Mr. Diggory sighed. "Just never say it again, around us at least."

"Don't worry, I don't curse a lot" Elisha stretched a little. "Could I make a request?"

"Of course."

"Could we keep this between the three of us?" Elisha sighed. "I-I don't want Kara to worry about me more than she needs to right now- I can tell her later, after we settle in at school."

"If that's what you want, sweetheart," Mrs. Diggory lightly placed a hand on his shoulder and quickly retracted it.

"Oh!" Mr. Diggory exclaimed. "Diana, his gift!"

"My what?"

"We were waiting to give this to you when we arrived home-" Mrs. Diggory pulled out a small cage with a tiny silver and white kitten, who meowed pitifully up at Elisha.

"A cat?"

"All students are allowed to have a pet at Hogwarts," Mrs. Diggory explained. "We got Kara a cat similar to yours; she's a Norwegian Forest cat and Kneazle."

"A Kneazle?"

"A magical creature, like a cat," She smiled, handing him the cage. "Don't worry she's completely harmless.

"What's her name?" Elisha asked as he examined the kitten who kept meowing at him, melting his heart.

"The shop owner called her Tigger-" Mr. Diggory said. "Of course Kara changed her cat's name to Bolt."

"Ah- I don't believe in giving animals ridiculous names-" Elisha trailed off. "But I guess Tigger is okay."

The cat meowed again as if it recognized its name, Elisha smiled warmly at the cute creature when it started to yawn and blink its eyes up at him. Nothing out of the ordinary really did happen after that, they joined Kara and Cedric and finished up their shopping. Mr. Diggory had to hold Kara back from hugging, even Cedric looked slightly worried… slightly.

The end of summer came quickly, Elisha couldn't believe he was actually looking forward to going to Hogwarts. His last month at the Diggory's was… annoying, after the incident at Diagon Alley, Kara kept catering to his every need. He tried not to feel too annoyed with it (annoyed mainly because Cedric was around her), but he knew she blamed herself for him fainting, she thought he fainted from embarrassment from her singing.

As for the medicine given by the mediwizard, it eventually became tolerable to drink. Only slightly. At least he could eat food without feeling the ill effects and there was a positive, Elisha gained more weight. Of course he was still skinny but at least his cheeks filled out and he could see less of his ribs when he sucked his stomach in.

The morning they left for Hogwarts was a little hectic, Kara was too excited and spilled her cereal all over herself and Cedric, causing a delay. Then as they were leaving she forgot her sweater, which cost another few minutes. Then Elisha forgot his books from Flourish and Blotts, which Mrs. Diggory went back to grab. Finally when Kara mentioned she might have forgotten something else, Mr. Diggory said he'd simply send it to her.

As they hurried into King's Cross Station, Mr. and Mrs. Diggory explained platform 9 ¾ while moving through the crowds.

"C'mon we're here!" Mr. Diggory said. "Cedric first!"

Elisha blinked as Cedric rushed forward with his trolley into the pillar between platform 9 and 10, simply vanishing into the white stone wall.

"We'll take Kara." Mr. and Mrs. Diggory held onto Kara who was shivering. "Are you alright following after Elisha?"

"O-of course." He stammered.

He watched them vanish like Cedric before them, Elisha took hold of his trolley, calming his cat Tigger, and was about to go before the Weasley's and Harry came. He watched them vanish like the Diggory's until Harry and Ron were left. The two boys rushed forward and to Elisha's horror, crashed into the wall. Elisha ran over, people around the boys stared at them and a guard yelled at them.

"Are you both ok?" Elisha asked.

"We're fine-" Ron answered.

"Why can't we get through?" Harry hissed to Ron.

"I dunno-" Ron looked around.

"Is there something wrong with the barrier?" Elisha asked.

"Shush!" Ron glared at Elisha. "There are Muggles in ear shot!"

"I-I'm sorry," Elisha whispered back.

"We're going to miss the train," Ron whispered. "I don't understand why the gateway's sealed itself —"

Elisha watched Harry push his trolley against the stone pillar, the barrier was sealed. Now Elisha started to panic, he was in London with two boys he barely knew and Kara was alone… well she had Cedric. Tigger gave a small pitiful meow.

"Have you tried a spell or something?!" Elisha asked in hushed panic, rummaging for his wand.

"No!" Hissed Ron. "There are Muggles around-"

The giant clocked chimed, Elisha's heart dropped; the train had gone.

"It's gone," said Ron, sounding stunned. "The train's left. What if Mum and Dad can't get back through to us? Have either of you got any Muggle money?"

Harry laughed, "The Dursleys haven't given me pocket money for about six years."

"What about you?"

"Ah- I had some American dollars…" Elisha said.

"Had?"

"It's a long story…"

Elisha watched Ron press his ear to the barrier.

"Can't hear a thing," he said tensely, "What're we going to do? I don't know how long it'll take Mum and Dad to get back to us."

Elisha noticed people were still watching them, mainly because Harry's owl kept screeching and Tigger kept whining in reply.

"What are we going to do?" Elisha breathed. "What if something happens to us-."

Elisha could feel the ice wanting to escape in response to his panic.

"I think we'd better go and wait by the car," said Harry.

"You guys have a car?"

"The Weasley's have a car," Harry said. "We're attracting too much atten —"

"Harry! Elisha!" said Ron, his eyes gleaming. "The car!"

"What about it?"

"We can fly the car to Hogwarts!"

"But I thought-"

"Wait…" Elisha blinked. "A flying car?"

"It's enchanted- But we're stuck, right? And we've got to get to school, haven't we? And even underage wizards are allowed to use magic if it's a real emergency, section nineteen or something of the Restriction of Thingy-"

"That doesn't sound-" Elisha began. "Safe…"

"But your Mum and Dad…" said Harry, pushing against the stone wall. "How will they get home?"

"They don't need the car!" said Ron impatiently. "They know how to Apparate! You know, just vanish and reappear at home! They only bother with Floo powder and the car because we're all underage and we're not allowed to Apparate yet…"

"But none of us have driver's licenses-" Elisha continued. "And won't your mom and dad be mad?"

"Can you fly it?" Harry asked Ron.

"Are either of you listening to me-" Elisha sighed.

"Yes we are, it'll be fine, I can fly it no problem," Ron said, as he wheeled his trolley to face the exit. "C'mon, let's go. If we hurry we'll be able to follow the Hogwarts Express-"

"Cmon Elisha," Harry followed closely behind Ron

"Why do I feel like this is going to go horribly wrong…" Elisha frowned.

Elisha followed behind them and out the exit, through the dense crowd and onto a side road where an old blue Ford Anglia was parked. Ron unlocked the trunk and Elisha stared as he realized it was bigger on the inside. He figured it was magic and with Ron and Harry's help, they packed his luggage in with theirs.

Ron and Harry sat in the front, while Elisha decided to sit in the back seat with Harry's owl Hedwig and Tigger. He opted to sit in the middle, he didn't want to get sick while flying or scared.

"Check that no one's watching," said Ron, starting the ignition with another tap of his wand.

Elisha did his best not to look out the window, traffic was rumbling but the street they were on was empty.

"Okay," Harry said.

Nothing could brace Elisha for what happened next. Ron had pressed a button on the dashboard and the car around them vanished, they did as well. Elisha jumped and gasped, he could feel the engine rumbling.

"What-"

"It's an invisibility booster," Ron explained. "Wouldn't want Muggles to see a flying car would we?"

"Well… no..:

"Let's go then," said Ron.

Elisha took a deep breath, telling himself he could do this. They began to ascend the buildings around them, they dropped out of sight as they rose higher, Elisha held his breath. All of London lay below him, covered in light smoke and glittering. The city looked like it was from Mary Poppins. He smiled softly, thinking maybe being up high wasn't so bad after all. Suddenly there came a popping noise, which made Elisha take back his thoughts on heights. All three of them reappeared.

"Uh-oh," said Ron, jabbing what Elisha assumed was the Invisibility booster. "It's faulty."

Elisha watched them both push the button, the car quickly vanished and came back again. Tigger gave a distressed meow.

"Shhh," Elisha said. "It's ok hun-"

"Now what?" said Harry.

Elisha watched the clouds press in around them, blocking his vision, which he was grateful for.

"We need to see the train to know what direction to go in," said Ron.

"Dip back down again- quickly-"

Elisha held his breath and nearly shut his eyes when they dipped beneath the fluffy clouds. He didn't understand how Harry or Ron could move so freely in their seat, even sticking their heads out the window to look for the train.

"I can see it!" Harry yelled. "Right ahead- there!"

Elisha dared a little peek, down below was a small scarlet snake streaking along the tracks, puffing out smoke here and there.

"Due north," said Ron, checking the compass on the dashboard. "Okay, we'll just have to check on it every half hour or so- hold on-"

Ron shot the care up suddenly into the clouds, Elisha cringed at the sudden jerk.

"C-could you please warn me the next time you do that-" Elisha stammered, feeling a small frost form on the seat.

"What?" Ron asked. "Are you afraid of heights?"

"A little-"

Ron said something back but Elisha chose to stare out the window instead. Watching the clouds turn and form in the sky. He wondered if this is what flying in an airplane or on a broom was like. He looked down at the whole of London through the thick haze, this may have been his second trip to London but he could dare to say that this would be his favorite.

Of course, that was difficult to enjoy when Ron and Harry decided to quickly drop beneath the clouds without warning to check wear the train was. The sudden jerks downward didn't do well for Elisha's nerves or Tigger's. The city of London was quickly replaced by the neat green fields of the English countryside, something Elisha only ever saw in a book or travel magazine.

"So- Harry," Elisha finally said after a couple of hours. "Why are you famous?"

Ron and Harry exchanged a look and Elisha shrunk in his seat.

"D-did- I say something wrong?"

"No-" Harry said. "I'm just used to everyone knowing who I am-"

"You never heard his story?" Ron interrupted. "I figured the Americans knew it."

"I wasn't raised in-" Elisha scratched behind his ear. "I was raised in a- what's it called- a Muggle household, I didn't know I was a wizard until about maybe two and half months ago."

"Wow…" Ron began. "You know nothing then?"

"A little since I came to England," Elisha said. "But beside that… no not much..."

Harry did seem a little uncomfortable, shifting around in his seat before clearing his throat.

"Well there was this dark wizard, named Voldemort…"

Ron jumped as the name was uttered, earning a sideways glance from Elisha, who thought the name sounded ridiculous.

"He was after my parents, I guess. I don't know why though." Harry stared out the window as if he didn't want to look at Elisha. "He found them and killed them, tried killing me too but I survived-"

"Oh-"

"He died when I survived, I suppose," Harry shifted again in his seat. "But he's out there still, plotting, he's dark as they come, according to a friend of mine- And apparently his name Volemort is taboo-"

Ron aqueaked again, Elisha ignored it. Harry continued on.

"So they came up with all sorts of names for him: He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is the most popular, and You-Know-Who."

"But the fear of his name gives Voldemort-" Elisha stopped when Ron made another sound. "More power over people."

"I suppose," Harry shrugged and went silent, Elisha felt bad that he had brought back painful memories for Harry.

"If it's any consolation-" Elisha sighed. "My parents are dead as well- or I think they're dead-"

"What about the people who approached you at Diagon Alley?" Ron asked.

"They're my legal guardians-." Elisha looked out at the purplish moors. "Kara and I were being raised by her uncle and aunt-"

Elisha gave them a little information about the Miller's and what they were like, he told them a little bit about America and how different it is. Elisha had to say he enjoyed talking to them, this was the first time he had a pleasant conversation with boys around his age.

Eventually the happy feeling Elisha felt being in the car with them wore off as he became thirsty and a little hungry. He could see Ron and Harry were suffering too, for they had taken their sweaters off and were sweating like they both went for a jog. To make matters worse, they rolled down the windows to air the car out, not helping Elisha's nerves.

"Can't be much further, can it?" croaked Ron,the sun was beginning to set, staining the sky a deep pink. "Ready for another check on the train- Elisha how are you not hot?"

"Uh- I'm cold natured?"

"What?" Ron asked. "But you're still wearing your sweater and not even sweating-"

Elisha shrugged, this was the positive to being born with ice magic. Sure he was hot- but not nearly hot as Ron and Harry right now, which he did feel a little bit guilty for.

Ron dipped the car below the clouds, the train was still there, winding its way past a snow capped mountain. It began to grow darker.

"Are we in Scot-" Elisha began, but he was cut off by the whining noise of the engine when Ron brought them back up into the clouds. Harry and Ron exchanged looks.

"W-what's wrong?" Elisha leaned forward.

"Nothing- It's probably just tired," said Ron. "It's never been this far before…"

"But we're ok right?"

Neither boy said anything, that's when Elisha started to panic a little. He took in a deep breath and tried to calm himself. He watched the stars dance and twinkle in the dark expanse of the sky, trying his hardest to remain calm. He ignored more sounds the car made, trying to stay positive and keep the ice to a minimum.

"Not far," said Ron, "not far now," and he patted the dashboard nervously.

Elisha closed his eyes, this was it, this is how he was going to die. Not from an angry mob but from jumping in a flying car with two people who don't even have a license, although that did sound cooler than being torn to bits by an angry mob.

"There!" Harry shouted, making them all jump. "Straight ahead!"

Elisha leaned forward again and gasped, there off in the distance beyond a lake stood a castle, with many turrets and towers: Elisha knew in an instant this was Hogwarts. He was brought out of this picturesque moment when the car began to shudder and began to lose altitude.

"What's happening?!" Elisha cried.

"Come on," Ron said, giving the steering wheel a little shake, "nearly there, come on"

Elisha held on to Tigger's cage as the engine began to groan and steam flew out from under the hood, running alongside the windows, blocking the view. Elisha placed Tigger's small cage on his lap and found himself clinging onto the door as the car wobbled.

"We're going to die-" Elisha couldn't breathe. "We're gonna die- we're gonna die-"

"No we're not!" Ron shouted at him. "C'mon, nearly there."

They were over the lake- their view of the castle becoming clearer- then he saw Ron put his foot down. There was a long clang, a sputter, and then the engine died.

"Uh-oh," said Ron.

Ice covered the side of Elisha's door as the car began to drop, Elisha was past the point of screaming, he was crying.

"Noooooo!" Ron yelled, he swung the wheel around; narrowly missing a stone wall. Elisha cried as the car made a great arc and passed over dark buildings, then a garden, into lawns, all the while losing altitude. Ron had pulled his wand out of his back pocket and Harry was white as a sheet.

"STOP! STOP!" he yelled, whacking the dashboard and the windshield.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THE POINT OF THAT!" Elisha yelled at him. "WE'RE STILL FALLING!"

"WATCH OUT FOR THAT TREE!" Harry bellowed and lunged for the steering wheel.

CRUNCH

Elisha launched forward between them, catching himself on Harry's seat. Tigger cried and Hedwig was screeching loudly. Elisha groaned and saw steam was pouring out from under the damaged hood, his shoulder stung where he had caught himself.

"Both of you ok?" Harry asked.

"I'll-" Elisha's face turned green. "I- I think I'm going to be sick-"

"My wand," said Ron, in a shaky voice. "Look at my wand —"

Elisha looked up, head still spinning, Ron's wand had broken in two. Before anyone could say anything, the car was hit hard, Sending both Elisha and Harry sideways into Ron. Elisha gasped and quickly untangled himself from them, then something equally as hard hit the roof.

"What the hell!?" Elisha yelled.

"What's happened- '' Ron gasped and Elisha could see why, a branch thicker than Elisha's leg smashed into the windshield. The tree they were in was attacking them, hitting as hard as it could. Elisha looked down at its massive trunk, twisting and turning them in its branches.

"What is this, the Wizard of OZ?!" Elisha looked dumbstruck. "The trees are-"

Another twisted limb struck the car again, leaving a large dent on the driver's side, the windshield was now being assaulted by an attack of smaller branches and twigs. Elisha ducked down as he felt something large pound in on the roof, caving it in.

"Run for it!" Shouted Ron, throwing his full weight on his door, but Elisha watched him be knocked back into Harry's lap, Another branch hit the back, throwing Elisha forward slightly.

"We're done for!" Ron moaned. Elisha wanted nothing more than to kill him right now, death by a sentient tree is not the way he wanted to go. Suddenly the car began to vibrate, the engine was back on.

"Reverse!" Harry yelled, the car suddenly shot back, the tree continued to hit them; and Elisha covered his ears to block out the sound of branches scraping along the metal as the car got free and sped away from the tree.

"That," panted Ron, "was close. Well done, car —"

With some sharp clunks, all the doors flew open, Elisha watched Harry and Ron get launched sideways onto the damp grass. Elisha blinked, then the back doors opened and he knew he was next, with a scream Elisha was dumped out with the luggage, Hedwig, and Tigger. The car had thrown him a little farther than the others, perhaps it was angry with the ice he left. Elisha got to his knees and watched the dented, scratched, and steaming car speed off into the darkness.

"Come back!" Ron yelled after it, brandishing his broken wand. "Dad'll kill me!"

"Not if I kill you first-" Elisha whispered under his breath.

The car disappeared from their sight and Elisha thought good riddance to it.

"Can you believe our luck?" said Ron miserably, bending down to pick up his rat. "Of all the trees we could've hit, we had to get one that hits back."

"They don't all hit back do they?" Elisha sighed, picking up his stuff.

"Just that one apparently," Harry said wearily, "Come on, we'd better get up to the school-"

Elisha followed behind the two boys, he was bruised and stiff, and having difficulty pulling his trunk up the damp slope. They approached two great oak doors in the darkness.

"I think the feast's already started," said Ron, dropping his trunk at the foot of the front steps and crossing quietly to look through a brightly lit window. "Hey- Harry- come and look- it's the Sorting!" Elisha hurried over behind them, but both boys were blocking his view of the great hall. A minute or two passed, then a dark shadow loomed over him. Elisha glanced up.

A tall thin man stood over him, robed in black with greasy, equally black hair. He had a stern look on his face, looking as though Elisha had just kicked him in the shin. His eyes, like two orbs of obsidian on each side of his rather large nose, glared at the three of them with distaste making Elisha's skin crawl.

"Hang on…" Harry muttered. "There's an empty chair at the staff table… Where's Snape?"

The man with the large nose raised an eyebrow. Elisha instantly knew: this man was Snape.

"Maybe he's ill!" said Ron with a little too much glee.

"Uh-" Elisha began, watching Snape scowl.

"Maybe he's left," said Harry, "because he missed out on the Defense Against Dark Arts job again!"

"Guys-" Elisha tried to warn them

"Or he might have been sacked!" said Ron enthusiastically. "I mean, everyone hates him."

"Ron-"

"Or maybe," said Snape in a very cold voice "he's waiting to hear why you three didn't arrive on the school train."

Both boys spun around, staring at him in shock.

"I-I tried to warn you-"

"Not very well-" Ron seemed upset.

"Silence- Follow me," Snape instructed them. "Not you, Mr. Caulfield, proceed into the Great Hall. You need to be sorted before any punishment-"

Elisha watched them be led away by Snape. He hesitated and approached the tall wooden door, with a light push he entered and his mouth dropped. The ceiling was lit with thousands of flowing candles above four large tables that sat the student body. Each table was laid out with glittering silver plates and goblets, at the front of the great hall sat another long table where Elisha guessed the teachers sat. Professor McGonagall stood with a large pointed hat, sorting the last of the first years. Noticing him, she frowned and motioned him to come forward. When she did so students began turning in their seats, staring at Elisha, whispering to each other.

Elisha slowly made his way to the front, trying his best to ignore the stares being made by the other children. His gloved hands were clenched tightly into fists.

"Who's that?" One student asked. "Why's he covered in so much muck?"

"He's the new transfer student-" Another whispered. "The second American-"

Elisha gulped, he noticed Hermione sitting with the Weasleys and- Kara. They all stared at him in what looked like shock at the state of his appearance. Elisha made a small wave to them and gave them a sheepish smile, he knew he would be bombarded with a hundred questions by Kara when this was all over.

"Caulfield, Elisha," McGonagall called from a long piece of paper, drawing his attention back to the front. Elisha approached, McGonagall looked at him with a worried look, as did the other people sitting at the staff table. The man in the middle however, old, with a long white beard, and dressed in robes had a twinkle in his eye. McGonagall ushered him to sit down on a small stool, Elisha did so. He looked down, Cedric was staring up at him with the same shocked expression on his face.

Suddenly the hat was placed on his head, blocking his view of the student body. Elisha didn't know what was supposed to happen- until the hat started talking.

"Hmmmm good mind- cunning- ambitious-" A small voice mulled over. "But caring- loyal-"

"What the-" Elisha gasped.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" The hat cried.

Elisha blinked as the hat was removed, what he assumed was the Hufflepuff table erupted into cheers. As did the rest of the great hall, he felt his ears start to turn red. He took off the hat and handed it back to McGonagall, making his way to the Hufflepuff table. The Hufflepuff prefect, a tall blonde girl, quickly shook his hand and offered him a seat next to her and… Cedric.

"Oh no-" Elisha said as he tried to politely shrug her off. "I can sit by-"

"Nonsense!" She gave him a warm smile. "After all, we'll be joined at the hip already, someone has to teach you how to get around the castle-"

Elisha cursed to himself as she practically forced him to sit beside Cedric. Elisha looked away, trying not to look at him. However, Cedric spoke first.

"Congratulations," he simply said.

"T-thanks-"

That was it, they didn't talk at all for the rest of the night. Elisha tried his best to stay calm with all his housemates asking him questions about America and about himself, not really respecting the idea of personal space. Elisha had to make sure no one touched him or even got too close. This did of course cause him to miss the entire speech given by Headmaster Dumbledore. By the end of the feast, it was time to head up to their common rooms.

"C'mon!" The Hufflepuff prefect grabbed him. "You'll be in the second year dormitory!"

"Dormitory…" Elisha squeaked. "Is it a shared living space?!"

Elisha felt his stomach flop and started to protest a little, but she didn't seem to listen to him at all. To make matters worse, he thought he heard Cedric laughing behind him. This was going to be the worst couple of months of his life.