Mrs. Weasley was a nervous wreck during breakfast. She hurried around, making sure each child had everything packed and ready to go. Patrick, Marigold, and Warren showed up with several parcels in hand. "Thank goodness you came. Would you mind keeping an eye on the boys in the kitchen while I take some clean robes up to Harry and Ron? I don't trust Fred and George alone," Mrs. Weasley said, walking up the stairs with an armload of robes.
"Which one of you is Fred and which is George?" Patrick asked, surveying the large table of red heads. Isabella glanced at George, who sat across from her and they began to laugh. Bridgette threw a biscuit at Fred, who caught it. "Kids, behave! Be good for your mother since all but two of your will be leaving soon. That reminds me, I haven't seen Arthur or Mr. Crouch's assistant, um, Weatherby."
It was Bill and Charlie's turn to laugh. Mr. Crouch had a habit of calling Percy by the name Weatherby. "Bella, Bridge, I hope you haven't hidden some of those chocolates in your trunks. If I get an owl from Dumbledore saying he caught either of you selling those candies, you'll be punished. I've already told him what to do," Marigold warned. Isabella shook her head, showing that she had not brought any Belchin' Chocolates, which was only partially true. All of the candies were in George's trunk.
After breakfast, Patrick and Warren opened the parcels, which contained brand new books. There were also two brand new sets of dress robes. Bridgette's were peacock blue and Isabella's were royal purple. Neither girl knew why they needed dress robes. Merlin was put back in his cage since it was raining pretty hard. They hurried to the village post office so Marigold could call for five taxis to take them all to the Kings Cross train station. She hoped that was a smart decision. Taxi drivers didn't like having to deal with live animals, especially since one was a dragon.
Somehow, all of the trunks fit in the taxi. The rain didn't let up so Isabella had to keep an old towel on Merlin's cage so he wouldn't get wet. Patrick and Marigold insisted that they share a car with their daughter. They wanted to explain something to her. "We don't want to alarm you but there's something we haven't told you. Grandfather Riddle isn't dead. He's been …well…" Patrick trailed off. Marigold glared at him, telling him to hush up. She had her wand in her lap. "Never mind, Bella. Forget what I've said here and have fun at school."
"Yes, there's something exciting about to happen. Very exciting indeed," Marigold added vaguely. Isabella found it wise to not ask any questions. She was keeping an eye on the wand her mother still grasped. If the taxi driver hadn't been a Muggle, Marigold would have used a spell on her own daughter. Isabella had a hunch that there was more to the secret than Patrick was telling. If Marigold hadn't been there, he would have said a lot more. The taxi driver pulled into the unloading zone and began to unload Isabella's trunk. "I told you not to say anything about my father to her. We need to erase that memory."
Patrick responded but his voice was drowned out by all of the noise of the train station. Bridgette, Warren and the Weasleys were already heading towards Platform Nine and Three Quarters. That was the only way to find the Hogwarts Express. Marigold hurriedly paid the drivers so they could catch up with their friends. "I think I can handle things from here. You guys can go off on your own," Isabella muttered, pushing the trolley towards the platform. She didn't feel like putting up with her parents at the moment.
"Bella, what's gotten into you? I've never heard you speak in such a harsh voice before," Marigold said as they walked a short distance behind the others. Isabella began to move a little faster so she could get away from her mother. Patrick jogged alongside his daughter and apologized for the entire morning. He didn't mean for all of the frustration Marigold had to rub off on her. Mrs. Weasley waved to the Scotts, saying they'd reached the platform. "I don't want your school year to start on a bad note, so let's try and get along. We won't be able to see you until October and we've never been so far apart before."
Then it was Patrick's turn to frown. Isabella wanted to know what was going to happen in October, other than her birthday. Harry, Ron and Hermione were talking about the weather when they suddenly slid through the brick pillar. "To get to the platform, you've got to pass through the bricks, without being noticed by any Muggles. It'll be difficult since the train station is full of them today," Charlie explained. Warren started walking slowly towards the barrier. He looked impatient, as though he were running late. After a quick glance at his watch, he disappeared. "Maybe I should help Isabella and Bridgette with this, since this is their first try," said Charlie.
All three of them passed through the barrier and stood on a different platform. An enormous red train was waiting to take all of the Hogwarts students to school. Clouds of steam were billowing from the train. Harry, Ron and Hermione had already claimed some seats, so Bridgette and Isabella figured they'd all sit together. They went back to the platform to say good bye to their families. "Our girls are going off to school, only now they won't be close to us anymore. If only Haley were here, she'd start crying. Too bad she's a Muggle or she would be glad to be here," Warren sighed, wiping a tear from his eye. Bridgette rolled her eyes.
"Besides, we might be seeing you sooner than you think," Charlie hinted as he gave Ginny a hug.
"Huh?" said Isabella.
"What do you mean?" George pried.
"You'll just have to wait. Just don't mention this to anyone since its 'classified information, until such time as the Ministry sees fit to release it.' I probably shouldn't have told you that." Charlie explained. Patrick pretended not to hear anything but the pouring rain. Bridgette tried to get some information from her father, but Warren refused to say a word. Before any more questions could be asked, the whistle blew.
Mrs. Weasley and Marigold ushered all of the young ones onto the train. Bridgette and Isabella stuck there heads out the window and shouted, "Thanks for everything Mrs. Weasley! Bye Mom, Dad and Dad! We'll miss you! Marigold was holding a handkerchief to her eyes dabbing. Patrick, Warren, Bill, Charlie and Mrs. Weasley waved as the train sped away.
Ron's gray owl, Pigwideon, was hooting loudly, so he threw his dress robes over the cage. His fancy robes were maroon with some ugly, moldy-looking lace around the neck and cuffs. It looked more like an old dress. At least it muffled Pig's hooting, which was really annoying. "I wonder what's going to happen at Hogwarts," Ron wondered, Merlin, who couldn't leave his cage, angrily flapped his wings to show his displeasure. "Before the big match, Bagman tried to tell us what was going to happen. He wanted us to know but he never did. Now my own mother won't tell even tell me what's going on!"
Hermione suddenly clamped her hand over Ron's mouth and pointed to the door. They could hear a familiar voice bragging about his father. Draco Malfoy was the only person they knew who held such high opinion of himself and his family. "Father wanted to send me to Durmstrang since they have a better Dark Arts program. They're more selective with their students, which mean no Mudbloods are allowed in the school. You know my father's opinion of Mudbloods. Dumbledore isn't strict enough with his admissions because he's such a Mudblood lover. Durmstrang is much better that Hogwarts, but Mother didn't like the idea of sending me so far away…" he said in a stuck up tone of voice.
"I wish he wouldn't use the M- word. It's not a word civilized people use in proper conversation," Bridgette muttered, pulling out her book of spells. "Honestly, he should have gone ahead and transferred to Durmstrang. Purebloods think too much of themselves, no offense Bella."
"You're a Pureblood?" Harry asked.
"I don't like to talk about it. We're not entirely pureblooded. I'm not as stuck up as the Malfoys," Isabella replied. The rain didn't let up. It just came down even harder as the afternoon dragged on. A lunch trolley stopped in the corridor and Harry bought lunch for everyone. Cauldron Cakes were usually reserved for dessert at the Academy of Fine Magic. A few of the other students from Hogwarts joined them. Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas had also been at the Quidditch World Cup.
Neville Longbottom, a round faced and often forgetful fourth year boy, listened as the others described the match. He wanted to go but his grandmother wouldn't buy tickets. "It was awesome, Neville. Check this out!" Ron said excitedly, showing off his miniature Viktor Krum. "We met Bridgette and Isabella in the Top Box. They're witches from the Academy of Fine Magic, all the way in America. Bridgette even met Viktor Krum!"
"Really?" Neville asked, his eyes getting wider.
"Yeah, but someone destroyed the autograph he gave me during the riots," Bridgette responded from behind her book.
"I met Krum and got an autograph. He's really nice guy even though he's very busy. Too bad I'll never get to see him again," Isabella sighed, taking her slip of parchment out of her pocket. Hermione snatched the parchment and read it before passing it to the others. "That little note means nothing. He and I just happen to be highly ranked Quidditch players, that's all."
Ron, who happened to have the note, started laughing somewhat loud. All of the boys were turning bright red from trying not to laugh. The door slid open and three unpleasant faces appeared. "What so funny in here, Malfoy? What brings you to us?" Harry demanded coldly. Draco looked at the parchment in Neville's hands with a disgusted sneer on his face.
"I heard Weasley talking about the Top Box. I hope you enjoyed it, since it was you first and last time there," Malfoy snapped. Bridgette glared at him over her book with icy blue eyes. "Well, if I remember correctly, you're all in Gryffindor, except Isabella and Bridgette. They're in the same house as me, Crabbe and Goyle. I'll bet you didn't know that your new friends are Slytherins. It's good to see Dumbledore only allowed purebloods to join school. Hogwarts would be better if it didn't have any filthy Mudbloods."
Bridgette didn't want to hear anymore. She threw her book down, took out her wand and stood up. Normally she was reserved, but Malfoy had crossed the line. "The only people who use such a foul word are the only true Mudbloods. You have dirty blood which mars our world. If I ever hear you say 'Mudblood' again, I'll show you why I'm the top witch in America," Bridgette warned, tucking her wand away after giving Malfoy a hard jab in the chest with it.
"Rest assured my father will hear about this," Malfoy swore.
"Malfoy, if we're getting our fathers involved, let's remember that my father is the Minister of Magic. You'd better leave us alone now. Don't forget that not all purebloods are jerks like you," Isabella, reaching for her wand. Sensing defeat, Malfoy and his two goons retreated back to their compartment. "Why did we have to be placed in Slytherin? Is everyone in that house like that?"
"Pretty much. They're all purebloods, but you two are nice. You can hang out with us any time," Ron said, handing the parchment back to Isabella. She was a little uncomfortable since she lied about her house. Merlin attempted to flap his wings but the cage wouldn't let him. He pawed at the lock, trying to free himself. Isabella figured it wouldn't hurt anyone if her dragon was let out for a few minutes. Seamus and Dean were very impressed with Merlin. Students were allowed to have an owl, toad or a cat but nobody had ever brought a dragon before.
The ride to Hogwarts seemed to take forever. While waiting for the train to stop, Hermione and Harry talked about events that happened at Hogwarts, like the Sorcerer's Stone and the Chamber of Secrets. "Has anything exciting ever happened at your old school?" Ron asked, adjusting his dress robes over Pig's cage. Merlin was sleeping in his cage with his tail hanging out. Bridgette had only one story from the Academy of Fine Magic. She'd discovered a hidden room that contained several old spell books and one book that held a diary. The diary was frightening since it was written by a boy who predicted a catastrophic event. He said the school would be destroyed by a fire. "So, what happened?"
"It was written fifty years ago, the same time as the Chamber of Secrets first opened. Two years ago, our school burned down and only seven people survived," Bridgette replied with a trembling voice. "All our friends died along with most of our teachers. Headmistress Fir made it out, along with three students, Professor Kaiser and a house elf."
"That's horrible!" Hermione exclaimed.
"Did you find out who did it?" Ron asked.
"Can we please not talk about the fire?" Isabella asked sharply. For a few minutes, the only sound was the pouring rain. Isabella knew her voice was shrill, but she hated talking about the incident. She had learned several horrible things that day. That was when she heard that Voldemort's Death Eaters were the ones that caused the fire. It was also the day Isabella lost her little sister. Her name was Emily Scott and she was only a second year when she died.
Bridgette quickly explained what had happened with Isabella's little sister. Ron thought of Ginny, who had almost died when Voldemort had possessed her mind and left her in the Chamber of Secrets. Silence filled the compartment once again. A few minutes later, they all changed into their robes and waited. The train finally slowed to a stop near a large lake. "That's Hagrid, the Care of Magical Creatures teacher," Harry said, pointing out his window to a very tall man. He was wearing a hideous hairy, brown suit that almost matched his bushy beard. Isabella sighed heavily. She had to strike a deal with Dumbledore in order for Merlin to come. The dragon had to live with the Care of Magical Creatures teacher.
First years were supposed to ride in small boats to the castle, but everyone else got a ride in horseless carriages. Isabella and Bridgette managed to get a carriage by themselves. "Well Bella, we're about to embark on one hell of an adventure. We're far away from our parents, with a new school to wreak havoc on. This is going to be the best year ever," Bridgette commented.
"I couldn't have said it better, Bridge," Isabella agreed.