Chapter 2

Sasha bounded through the door with her red curls bouncing.

"The Imagitini Brigade is here!" she announced waving forth a quart of Verisum's Vodka and a bottle of Imagine-It Ambrosia.

Becky followed with a steaming flat box. "And garlic and feta Pizza from Eugene's best!"

Where Sasha was a small and bouncy redhead, Becky was quiet and stately with the dark look of her Anasazi mother.

Lexi had barely closed the door before her friends were rattling around the kitchen whisking plates and martini glasses from shelves and mixing drinks with their wands.

The three women had been friends since their first year at Islandwood. Sasha was from a long line of New England witches and had broken the family tradition by eschewing the New England School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in Salem for Oregon's Islandwood Academy. She was exuberant and daring, yet somehow had chosen to become a Ministry Accountant. It seemed at odds with her adoration of anything dangerous, but she said it gave her balance and that there really was nothing as daring than playing with government money.

Becky was far more quiet and reserved. She had grown up in the New Mexican Anasazi community, an ancient Native American Wizarding community. The Muggle world considered the disappearance on the Anasazi a great mystery, while the Wizarding community knew they had simply chosen to remove themselves from Muggles.

Oddly enough, despite her heritage Becky, worked in a Muggle daycare in Eugene. She loved the children's ability to see her as the witch she was, while her Muggle co-workers remained clueless. Her job also helped the Ministry identify Muggle-born wizards and witches, of which there were plenty in Eugene.

Lexi was the balance between her friends in many ways. She was more outgoing than Becky, but, like most of the world, had a little less exuberance than Sasha (who at the moment was re-arranging Lexi's cupboards while also mixing drinks).

Lexi taught History of Magic and Muggle Studies at the Islandwood Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry, located of the Oregon coast. She had grown up in Washington and Oregon and loved the area and loved the school, but had jumped at the chance for the Dumbledore Fellowship to spend a year at England's venerable Hogwarts School. Now with one night to go, her excitement was tempered with nerves.

"What if they don't understand me?"

"They speak English don't they? Can I stack you cups up here? They look wonderful!" responded Sasha.

"Please Sasha, nothing on the ceiling. Last time there was an earthquake I had to buy all new cups. And, I meant that what if I am not clear enough in explaining things? They may be far more advanced than Islandwood kids," sighed Lexi.

"I think you are selling American wizarding a bit short," remarked Becky as she grabbed for the plates Sasha was wafting to top of the cupboards.

"Hey, don't they have that Peters kid who was in the news when we were kids for like saving the world from his crib or something?" asked Sasha as she turned her attention back to mixing drinks.

"Potter, Harry Potter. Yes, he had something to do with Voldemort and he is with my sophomores, or rather, my 'Fifth Years'," she corrected herself, "and that worries me as I have to prepare them to take something called O.W.L.S., which I guess is their equivalent of W.A.N.D.S."

"Ewwww, Wizarding at Normal Degrees. I really hated standardized tests. Want to try the first batch," Sasha comments as shoved a drink at Lexi.

"Hmmmm, watermelon! You do make the best Imagitinis, Sash. How did you get watermelon?" asked Lexi.

"Imagine-It Ambrosia has new spells on the back for mixing. I think I will try the Key Lime next," Sasha answered.

"Look," Becky said as she handed out the pizza, "you have been teaching for 5 years here without any complaints. You aced your W.A.N.D.S and you graduated with honors from Islandwood, the University of American Wizardry, and Evergreen College. You have won three teaching awards AND they don't give this fellowship to just any professor. You will do just fine and won't destroy any young minds. So, let's just go eat our pizza, drink our Imagitinis, and watch Charmed."

"And, you just might meet a handsome Wizard there!" Sasha added.

"Really not banking on that, but you are right. I'll be fine." Lexi sighed as she grabbed her drink and dinner. Now, if she could only get the nagging worries from her mind.