A/N: Chapter 2 for your viewing pleasure. It might be beneficial to you if you go back to 'Redemption' and re-read Chapter 14, Vae Victis and think about what Binns has told Will about his life. Ho hum....cameo from one of the Weasley's here, the introduction of an important player, and of course the sorting ceremony. I would've written a sorting hat song, but my poetry skills are less than satisfactory at the moment. Maybe I'll write one later. Anway, on with the chapter, and don't forget to review!
Chapter 2- The Blood of Ravens
The lone figure paced through the overgrown gardens surrounding the mansion, a shadow of it's once-great splendour. He moved silently, not wishing to alert the house elves to where he was going. Pausing at the great wall of thorns, he murmured the password and the thorns parted, to where the two identical graves stood, the statue of Thanatos watching over them.
He kneeled at the graves, speaking as he did.
"I come to see you yet again, Mater, Pater. This time I bring good news. My seeking of knowledge has paid off. I have found a way to have power and reduce those that hurt you and I to nothing. It is but a small task, but one that will require careful planning, and precision. But I will most certainly achieve what I started so many years ago. I will have vengeance on your deaths, may all who dare listen hark my words."
Then, having said what he'd needed to, he departed back to the mansion, and to his study. There, he lit the fireplace, through a fistful of invisible dust into it, turning the flames a pearly, translucent white. A face appeared, and bowed his head slightly.
"It has been a long time since we last exchanged words, young Dragon. Why do you heed my call now?"
"I require your help, Dunkle Bedienstete...."
*********************************
"I heard that Gryffindor is the house for show-offs....."
"No way! Slytherin is!"
"Well I'm hoping to get into Hufflepuff myself...."
"Hmm, yes I can understand that..."
Voices overlapped in platform 9 3/4 as young witches and wizards lugged animal cages, trunks and trolleys all over the place. Among the crowd moved Emmanuel and Eveleen, followed by the young woman who their mother had put in charge of them when she'd left for Hogwarts to prepare her lessons.
"So.....Ginny, it was nice having you look after us." Emmanuel said, turning to her.
The red-head smiled, wiping sweat from her forehead and setting down her briefcase. "I think I needed a bit of a break from the offices. Truly, you're everything your mother said you'd be. Can you tell her that when you get to Hogwarts?"
"Sure." Eveleen replied, beginning to take her trunk and the cage with Ezra in it.
"Well, I must be going....the chief editor will hex me if I'm late again! Are you sure you don't need help with your trunks?"
"No, we're fine Ginny. Thankyou!"
"Right then." she said in return, and waved them off as they set towards the scarlet engine.
The twins loaded their trunks on, and carried their cages down towards the nearest compartment.
There was one occupant of the compartment, what appeared to be two first years. The boy sat straight and tall, with dark hair and blue eyes and the girl was shorter, brown-haired and blue-eyed.
"Mind if we sit here?" Emmanuel asked politely, as Eveleen barged in, and plopped herself on a seat.
The boy laughed. "Sure, but only if you tell us who you are first."
"I'm Emmanuel Quirrell, and this is my sister Eve."
"Quirrell, hmm? I swear I've heard my Dad mention that name before somewhere. Ah, well. I'm Nicodemus Boot, but I'd rather you called me Nic. And this is my friend, Jude Davies." he said, gesturing to the girl beside him.
"Are those iguanas?" Jude asked, staring with great fascination at the cages containing the lizards.
"Yeah, from South America. They're bred from our Dad's. That one's Ezra, and this one here is Isidora, and she's mine." answered Emmanuel.
"That's so cool. I wouldn't have minded an iguana, but Dad got me this instead." said Jude, and picked up a cage from under her seat. Perched inside was the most unusual-looking bird the twins had ever seen. It was small, golden and round, with two small silver wings.
"What is it?" asked Eveleen, whose turn it was to be interested.
"It's a Golden Snidget and her name's Iulia."
"Er....cute, I think. I've never seen anything.....wait! It looks just like the-" Emmanuel exclaimed.
"God, you must be an idiot sometimes. Yes, it looks just like a Golden Snitch from Quidditch. Good work there, young Sherlock."
"Sherlock?" Nic asked, an eyebrow raised.
The twins and Jude exchanged glances. "It's a muggle thing," Jude said. "Are you two half 'n half like me?"
"Dad was a pureblood, Mum's a half-blood." Eveleen replied.
"Was?"
"Dad's dead." Emmanuel replied sombrely. "He died before we were born."
There was an uncomfortable silence.
"That's terrible. Gods, I couldn't imagine life without my-"
"Would you shut up, Nic?" Jude whispered harshly to the boy, and then proceeded to change the subject.
"So, which house do you want to get in? My Dad was in Ravenclaw *and* he was Quidditch captain." Jude stated proudly, raising her chin.
"Funny, our parents were in Ravenclaw too. Mum's a Ravenclaw teacher." said Eve.
Jude's mouth opened in shock. "Your Mum teaches at Hogwarts?!"
"Yes, she's the Astronomy Professor." Emmanuel said, quietly amused by Jude's obvious shock. "Our Dad taught DADA at Hogwarts before he died, apparently."
"Wow.....how much do we pay you to get top results for us?" said Nic, beaming at the twins' outraged faces. "Kidding!"
*********************************
The train journey passed uneventfully, and after changing into their school robes, the quartet stepped off the train, to hear a rather nervous voice beckoning them.
"First years? First years, over this way please."
The twins, Nic and Jude followed the voice, along with many other first-years. The owner of the voice was a rather nervous-looking man in dark red robes, holding a lantern. He was short, and gave off the impression of once being chubby, but having lost the weight. Once all the first years had gathered, he began to speak.
"I'm Professor Longbottom, your Herbology teacher and this year I have been given the task of guiding you over Hogwarts lake and over to the castle, where you will be sorted into your respective houses." he said, beckoning the group down a path, towards a stretch of water ahead.
"We will travel over the lake by the boats you see waiting for us. Four to a boat, and please make an effort not to capsize them! Lord knows what could come up for you from the depths..." he continued, shuddering involuntarily and setting off a low murmur through the crowd of first years.
"I heard that it's a giant kelpie....."
"Nonsense! I heard the Loch Ness monster comes here at this time of year.."
"Alright, children. Four to a boat please. Mind your step...." said Professor Longbottom, nervously rubbing his hands together.
The twins adjourned to a boat with Nic and Jude, and when everybody was in a boat, they began to transverse the dead, calm lake, the silence peppered with murmured conversation.
"Do either of you know how we're getting sorted?" whispered Eve.
"No idea. Dad wouldn't tell me. If you ask me, I think there's a conspiracy among our Mums and Dads as to how it's done." said Nic, eyeing the other boats.
"Maybe it's something to do with Quidditch." Jude said hopefully, as they neared the end of their journey.
*********************************
After stepping off the boats, the first years, led by Professor Longbottom, made their way up the castle stairs and into the Entrance hall. Once there, he shushed them.
"Now, in a few minutes you'll come into the Great Hall and be sorted into one of the four school houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has produced great and powerful wizards and they all have quite a history. While I go and prepare the sorting, I must ask you to form two lines and for those of us looking a little scruffy, I'd suggest some last-minute grooming, as our Headmistress does not tolerate scruffiness." he said, and exited through the two doors. Those first-years close enough caught a glimpse of four tables filled with students, all wearing black robes identical to theirs.
"So your Mum'll be there? That's so cool....I wish my parents could be here to see it." said Nic wistfully.
"*My* Mum could be here if she wanted, but she's a very busy and important woman." an impertinent voice announced behind the twins. They turned around to face a much-taller first year girl. She was strikingly attractive for someone her age, with wavy blonde hair and dark blue eyes the colour of sapphires.
"And who are you?" Eve asked, not intimidated at all by the girl's sobby attitude.
"Mara. Mara Parkinson." she said, lifting her chin and smiling down at Eve as if she were a nobody. "And who are you?"
Eve opened her mouth to answer, but was interrupted by Professor Longbottom appearing again.
"Right," he said, opening the two large doors. "straight lines, and in we go!"
A collective hush fell through the hall as the first-years came in, led by Professor Longbottom. The first years themselves were awed into silence by the magnificance of the hall, with it's enchanted ceiling and floating candles. As seen before, there were four tables, at which the students of each house sat, and a table at the end of the hall, where the teachers were sitting.
After Professor Longbottom had lined them up to the side, a tiny wizard with a large beard was bringing up a stool and a very old, patched hat. The stool was postioned in front of the staff table, and the hat placed on top of it. Out of a tear on the brim, the hat began to sing a song, explaining each house and their strengths and weaknesses.
Gryffindor, the 'house of lions' as the hat so eloquently put it, was the house where brave and noble students went. Hufflepuff, 'the burrow of Badgers', was where loyal, hardworking students went. Slytherin, 'the den of Serpents' claimed the cunning, ambitious ones, and Ravenclaw 'the nest of Ravens' was where the wise and learned went.
After it'd sung it's song, the tiny man who'd brought up the stool and hat took a scroll of parchment from his robe, unrolled it. He turned to the group.
"When I call your name, please come forward, place the hat on your head, and the sorting hat will sort you. First up.....Allen, Chloe!"
"A small young girl, flushed with excitement, sidled up to the stool nervously, and perched herself on it, placing the hat on her head."
There was a moment of palpable silence, and then-
"Gryffindor!" the hat shouted and Chloe stumbled off the stool and up to the Gryffindor table, where the assembled students had jumped to their feet and were clapping and cheering.
"Alton, Rufus!"
"Slytherin!"
"Astor, James!"
"Ravenclaw!"
The list continued it's way down. Jude and Nic both became Ravenclaws. Parkinson became a Slytherin, which she looked to be very pleased about.
"I hope we get in..." Emmanuel said nervously, looking around. His eyes fell upon his mother, watching the sorting, seated with Professors Snape and Rimmer. It was then that he noticed the Headmistress: A tall, strict, woman in dark green robes with dark hair. She was watching with intense interest. Before he knew, he heard his name.
"Quirrell, Emmanuel!"
Emmanuel walked slowly up to the stool, the faint murmurs from the staff table reaching his ears. He looked to his mother, and she smiled at him, soothing his nerves.
He got up on the stool, and upon placing the hat on his head, was most surprised to hear a little voice in his ear.
"Ah, young Emmanuel. Shouldn't be too hard to find where to place you. You have the blood of Ravens running through your veins, young wizard. Undoubtedly, you are a Ravenclaw!"
Blood of Ravens? What did that mean? No matter. He got off the stool, and made his way over to the Ravenclaw table. The assembled students applauded him, shaking hands, clapping him on the back, and it was with great relief that he sat down next to Nic and Jude, waiting to see where his sister went.
*********************************
"Quirrell, Eveleen!"
Eveleen was considerably less nervous than her brother as she walked to the hat. Joining her brother or being in any house but Mara's would be an obvious bonus, of course. She sat on the stool, and jammed the hat on her head.
"Another Quirrell? Hmm, you're considerably more ambitous than your brother, you could almost be a Slytherin. But seeing who you are and will be, I think it'd be for your benefit if you went to Ravenclaw!"
Eve smiled, hopping off the stool and heading towards her brother and her two new friends.
*********************************
After the last student was sorted, the Headmistress stood up.
"I would like to welcome all new students to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizadry. I am your Headmistress, Professor McGongagall. We expect great things of you here, and given the hopeful looks upon your faces, I would guess you are too. I look forward to teaching you this year, and wish you all the best." she said, smiling at them.
"Now," she said, going serious. "I must remind you yet again that the restricted section of the library is out of bounds unless written permission is given to our librarian Madam Pince. A list of activities that will earn you detention has been pinned to your commonroom noticeboards, and I would ask you to check it as you come in. Also, Madam Hooch would like to see all Quidditch hopefuls this Friday. Now, that said, let dinner commence!"
And with that pronouncement, the old and new students of Hogwarts began to tuck into the delicacies in front of them.
Emmanuel was excited, very excited. Too excited to talk. He instead contented himself to listening to his sister and their friends discuss all the possibilities of the new year. He looked to the table, and saw his Mum grinning at him, looking very proud. The two Slytherin Professors smiled too, but when Emmanuel looked to where the Headmistress should've been, she was gone.
*********************************
Minerva hurried up the stairs, feeling jittery, all of a sudden. She moved quickly and silently down the corridors, wanting to find him as soon as possible.
Finally she came to his room, and in a manner totally unlike her, burst in. It was only then that she realised her mistake.
"No matter Minerva, I had a feeling you'd be up here sooner or later. What's the matter?"
Minerva moved towards the roaring fireplace, calming herself a little.
"They're here, Albus."
Chapter 2- The Blood of Ravens
The lone figure paced through the overgrown gardens surrounding the mansion, a shadow of it's once-great splendour. He moved silently, not wishing to alert the house elves to where he was going. Pausing at the great wall of thorns, he murmured the password and the thorns parted, to where the two identical graves stood, the statue of Thanatos watching over them.
He kneeled at the graves, speaking as he did.
"I come to see you yet again, Mater, Pater. This time I bring good news. My seeking of knowledge has paid off. I have found a way to have power and reduce those that hurt you and I to nothing. It is but a small task, but one that will require careful planning, and precision. But I will most certainly achieve what I started so many years ago. I will have vengeance on your deaths, may all who dare listen hark my words."
Then, having said what he'd needed to, he departed back to the mansion, and to his study. There, he lit the fireplace, through a fistful of invisible dust into it, turning the flames a pearly, translucent white. A face appeared, and bowed his head slightly.
"It has been a long time since we last exchanged words, young Dragon. Why do you heed my call now?"
"I require your help, Dunkle Bedienstete...."
*********************************
"I heard that Gryffindor is the house for show-offs....."
"No way! Slytherin is!"
"Well I'm hoping to get into Hufflepuff myself...."
"Hmm, yes I can understand that..."
Voices overlapped in platform 9 3/4 as young witches and wizards lugged animal cages, trunks and trolleys all over the place. Among the crowd moved Emmanuel and Eveleen, followed by the young woman who their mother had put in charge of them when she'd left for Hogwarts to prepare her lessons.
"So.....Ginny, it was nice having you look after us." Emmanuel said, turning to her.
The red-head smiled, wiping sweat from her forehead and setting down her briefcase. "I think I needed a bit of a break from the offices. Truly, you're everything your mother said you'd be. Can you tell her that when you get to Hogwarts?"
"Sure." Eveleen replied, beginning to take her trunk and the cage with Ezra in it.
"Well, I must be going....the chief editor will hex me if I'm late again! Are you sure you don't need help with your trunks?"
"No, we're fine Ginny. Thankyou!"
"Right then." she said in return, and waved them off as they set towards the scarlet engine.
The twins loaded their trunks on, and carried their cages down towards the nearest compartment.
There was one occupant of the compartment, what appeared to be two first years. The boy sat straight and tall, with dark hair and blue eyes and the girl was shorter, brown-haired and blue-eyed.
"Mind if we sit here?" Emmanuel asked politely, as Eveleen barged in, and plopped herself on a seat.
The boy laughed. "Sure, but only if you tell us who you are first."
"I'm Emmanuel Quirrell, and this is my sister Eve."
"Quirrell, hmm? I swear I've heard my Dad mention that name before somewhere. Ah, well. I'm Nicodemus Boot, but I'd rather you called me Nic. And this is my friend, Jude Davies." he said, gesturing to the girl beside him.
"Are those iguanas?" Jude asked, staring with great fascination at the cages containing the lizards.
"Yeah, from South America. They're bred from our Dad's. That one's Ezra, and this one here is Isidora, and she's mine." answered Emmanuel.
"That's so cool. I wouldn't have minded an iguana, but Dad got me this instead." said Jude, and picked up a cage from under her seat. Perched inside was the most unusual-looking bird the twins had ever seen. It was small, golden and round, with two small silver wings.
"What is it?" asked Eveleen, whose turn it was to be interested.
"It's a Golden Snidget and her name's Iulia."
"Er....cute, I think. I've never seen anything.....wait! It looks just like the-" Emmanuel exclaimed.
"God, you must be an idiot sometimes. Yes, it looks just like a Golden Snitch from Quidditch. Good work there, young Sherlock."
"Sherlock?" Nic asked, an eyebrow raised.
The twins and Jude exchanged glances. "It's a muggle thing," Jude said. "Are you two half 'n half like me?"
"Dad was a pureblood, Mum's a half-blood." Eveleen replied.
"Was?"
"Dad's dead." Emmanuel replied sombrely. "He died before we were born."
There was an uncomfortable silence.
"That's terrible. Gods, I couldn't imagine life without my-"
"Would you shut up, Nic?" Jude whispered harshly to the boy, and then proceeded to change the subject.
"So, which house do you want to get in? My Dad was in Ravenclaw *and* he was Quidditch captain." Jude stated proudly, raising her chin.
"Funny, our parents were in Ravenclaw too. Mum's a Ravenclaw teacher." said Eve.
Jude's mouth opened in shock. "Your Mum teaches at Hogwarts?!"
"Yes, she's the Astronomy Professor." Emmanuel said, quietly amused by Jude's obvious shock. "Our Dad taught DADA at Hogwarts before he died, apparently."
"Wow.....how much do we pay you to get top results for us?" said Nic, beaming at the twins' outraged faces. "Kidding!"
*********************************
The train journey passed uneventfully, and after changing into their school robes, the quartet stepped off the train, to hear a rather nervous voice beckoning them.
"First years? First years, over this way please."
The twins, Nic and Jude followed the voice, along with many other first-years. The owner of the voice was a rather nervous-looking man in dark red robes, holding a lantern. He was short, and gave off the impression of once being chubby, but having lost the weight. Once all the first years had gathered, he began to speak.
"I'm Professor Longbottom, your Herbology teacher and this year I have been given the task of guiding you over Hogwarts lake and over to the castle, where you will be sorted into your respective houses." he said, beckoning the group down a path, towards a stretch of water ahead.
"We will travel over the lake by the boats you see waiting for us. Four to a boat, and please make an effort not to capsize them! Lord knows what could come up for you from the depths..." he continued, shuddering involuntarily and setting off a low murmur through the crowd of first years.
"I heard that it's a giant kelpie....."
"Nonsense! I heard the Loch Ness monster comes here at this time of year.."
"Alright, children. Four to a boat please. Mind your step...." said Professor Longbottom, nervously rubbing his hands together.
The twins adjourned to a boat with Nic and Jude, and when everybody was in a boat, they began to transverse the dead, calm lake, the silence peppered with murmured conversation.
"Do either of you know how we're getting sorted?" whispered Eve.
"No idea. Dad wouldn't tell me. If you ask me, I think there's a conspiracy among our Mums and Dads as to how it's done." said Nic, eyeing the other boats.
"Maybe it's something to do with Quidditch." Jude said hopefully, as they neared the end of their journey.
*********************************
After stepping off the boats, the first years, led by Professor Longbottom, made their way up the castle stairs and into the Entrance hall. Once there, he shushed them.
"Now, in a few minutes you'll come into the Great Hall and be sorted into one of the four school houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has produced great and powerful wizards and they all have quite a history. While I go and prepare the sorting, I must ask you to form two lines and for those of us looking a little scruffy, I'd suggest some last-minute grooming, as our Headmistress does not tolerate scruffiness." he said, and exited through the two doors. Those first-years close enough caught a glimpse of four tables filled with students, all wearing black robes identical to theirs.
"So your Mum'll be there? That's so cool....I wish my parents could be here to see it." said Nic wistfully.
"*My* Mum could be here if she wanted, but she's a very busy and important woman." an impertinent voice announced behind the twins. They turned around to face a much-taller first year girl. She was strikingly attractive for someone her age, with wavy blonde hair and dark blue eyes the colour of sapphires.
"And who are you?" Eve asked, not intimidated at all by the girl's sobby attitude.
"Mara. Mara Parkinson." she said, lifting her chin and smiling down at Eve as if she were a nobody. "And who are you?"
Eve opened her mouth to answer, but was interrupted by Professor Longbottom appearing again.
"Right," he said, opening the two large doors. "straight lines, and in we go!"
A collective hush fell through the hall as the first-years came in, led by Professor Longbottom. The first years themselves were awed into silence by the magnificance of the hall, with it's enchanted ceiling and floating candles. As seen before, there were four tables, at which the students of each house sat, and a table at the end of the hall, where the teachers were sitting.
After Professor Longbottom had lined them up to the side, a tiny wizard with a large beard was bringing up a stool and a very old, patched hat. The stool was postioned in front of the staff table, and the hat placed on top of it. Out of a tear on the brim, the hat began to sing a song, explaining each house and their strengths and weaknesses.
Gryffindor, the 'house of lions' as the hat so eloquently put it, was the house where brave and noble students went. Hufflepuff, 'the burrow of Badgers', was where loyal, hardworking students went. Slytherin, 'the den of Serpents' claimed the cunning, ambitious ones, and Ravenclaw 'the nest of Ravens' was where the wise and learned went.
After it'd sung it's song, the tiny man who'd brought up the stool and hat took a scroll of parchment from his robe, unrolled it. He turned to the group.
"When I call your name, please come forward, place the hat on your head, and the sorting hat will sort you. First up.....Allen, Chloe!"
"A small young girl, flushed with excitement, sidled up to the stool nervously, and perched herself on it, placing the hat on her head."
There was a moment of palpable silence, and then-
"Gryffindor!" the hat shouted and Chloe stumbled off the stool and up to the Gryffindor table, where the assembled students had jumped to their feet and were clapping and cheering.
"Alton, Rufus!"
"Slytherin!"
"Astor, James!"
"Ravenclaw!"
The list continued it's way down. Jude and Nic both became Ravenclaws. Parkinson became a Slytherin, which she looked to be very pleased about.
"I hope we get in..." Emmanuel said nervously, looking around. His eyes fell upon his mother, watching the sorting, seated with Professors Snape and Rimmer. It was then that he noticed the Headmistress: A tall, strict, woman in dark green robes with dark hair. She was watching with intense interest. Before he knew, he heard his name.
"Quirrell, Emmanuel!"
Emmanuel walked slowly up to the stool, the faint murmurs from the staff table reaching his ears. He looked to his mother, and she smiled at him, soothing his nerves.
He got up on the stool, and upon placing the hat on his head, was most surprised to hear a little voice in his ear.
"Ah, young Emmanuel. Shouldn't be too hard to find where to place you. You have the blood of Ravens running through your veins, young wizard. Undoubtedly, you are a Ravenclaw!"
Blood of Ravens? What did that mean? No matter. He got off the stool, and made his way over to the Ravenclaw table. The assembled students applauded him, shaking hands, clapping him on the back, and it was with great relief that he sat down next to Nic and Jude, waiting to see where his sister went.
*********************************
"Quirrell, Eveleen!"
Eveleen was considerably less nervous than her brother as she walked to the hat. Joining her brother or being in any house but Mara's would be an obvious bonus, of course. She sat on the stool, and jammed the hat on her head.
"Another Quirrell? Hmm, you're considerably more ambitous than your brother, you could almost be a Slytherin. But seeing who you are and will be, I think it'd be for your benefit if you went to Ravenclaw!"
Eve smiled, hopping off the stool and heading towards her brother and her two new friends.
*********************************
After the last student was sorted, the Headmistress stood up.
"I would like to welcome all new students to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizadry. I am your Headmistress, Professor McGongagall. We expect great things of you here, and given the hopeful looks upon your faces, I would guess you are too. I look forward to teaching you this year, and wish you all the best." she said, smiling at them.
"Now," she said, going serious. "I must remind you yet again that the restricted section of the library is out of bounds unless written permission is given to our librarian Madam Pince. A list of activities that will earn you detention has been pinned to your commonroom noticeboards, and I would ask you to check it as you come in. Also, Madam Hooch would like to see all Quidditch hopefuls this Friday. Now, that said, let dinner commence!"
And with that pronouncement, the old and new students of Hogwarts began to tuck into the delicacies in front of them.
Emmanuel was excited, very excited. Too excited to talk. He instead contented himself to listening to his sister and their friends discuss all the possibilities of the new year. He looked to the table, and saw his Mum grinning at him, looking very proud. The two Slytherin Professors smiled too, but when Emmanuel looked to where the Headmistress should've been, she was gone.
*********************************
Minerva hurried up the stairs, feeling jittery, all of a sudden. She moved quickly and silently down the corridors, wanting to find him as soon as possible.
Finally she came to his room, and in a manner totally unlike her, burst in. It was only then that she realised her mistake.
"No matter Minerva, I had a feeling you'd be up here sooner or later. What's the matter?"
Minerva moved towards the roaring fireplace, calming herself a little.
"They're here, Albus."