Chapter 2: Hogwarts

If one were to ask Ginny Weasley when her journey to Hogwarts began, she would not have pointed to that fateful day when her best friend came running back to the Burrow with her dress scorched, eyes wide and mouth open in a silent scream. Yet, she would have still recalled it vividly. How her mother came running out of the kitchen where she was cleaning up from lunch and knelt beside the stricken girl trying to find out what happened only to be met by silence. She would probably never forget the dual loud cracks of Bill apparating to the Rookery and Charlie to the Ministry of Magic for their father, only for all three to return minutes later with their faces grim. She would be tormented for weeks by the look in her friend's silver eyes when she finally met her gaze: the haunted look of a young girl who had seen far too much.

While she would never forget how her best friend spent over a month absolutely silent, refusing to eat, and meeting the eyes of anyone who tried to talk to her with a gaze so piercing that it was as if she could see into their soul, Ginny Weasley would not have said that was when her journey to Hogwarts began. Nor did her journey to Hogwarts begin when she received her letter. Nor did it begin the morning when she came downstairs to find Harry Potter sitting calmly at their table eating breakfast.

No. Ginny would say that her journey to Hogwarts began with a trip to Diagon Alley when she found the courage to stand up to a bully who was picking on Harry, her hero, and was rewarded that night by finding a small leather book tucked inside her schoolbooks.

From within the safety of her room, Ginny examined the book. It seemed to be a notebook or diary of some kind. The inner cover identified its former owner as a Tom Riddle, but the pages were all completely blank. It was completely unused and all hers.

Seeing no sense waiting, Ginny rummaged around in her packages for a quill and bottle of ink and started writing. Dear Diary,

The question was what she should say. Before she could decide, the letters had sunk into the paper and vanished. To her shock, in their place was a new sentence written in an unfamiliar hand. Hello. Is anyone there?

Ginny hesitantly replied. Hi.

Who is this?

Ginny Weasley. Who are you?

How did you come by this diary?

I found it tucked inside my schoolbooks.

Schoolbooks? How old are you, Ms. Weasley?

I'm eleven and about to start at Hogwarts. Who are you?

What year is it?

1992

So long? How could this happen? You said you found me among your schoolbooks?

I'm not answering any more of your questions until you answer mine. Who are you? What are you?

There was a long pause, and Ginny wasn't sure if the diary was going to respond. She had almost given up when a new line of text appeared. You may call me Tom, and I am a diary. I apologize for my behavior earlier. I was just shocked. It seems like my previous owner misplaced me. I was surprised to find a different handwriting in me.

Maybe I could help you find your owner?

Thank you, but it seems as though over ten years have passed since my old owner last wrote to me. Time is… difficult for me. The silence between entries can make days feel like years and years feel like mere days.

I could write to you. That way you wouldn't be alone.

That would be greatly appreciated, Ms. Weasley. Perhaps we should introduce ourselves. I am a diary. My former owner's name was Tom Riddle. He left enough of himself in my pages that you should probably call me Tom as well. What is your full name?

Ginerva Weasley, although I go by Ginny.

Hello Ginerva. It is a pleasure to meet you.


Luna pulled her trunk down the Hogwarts Express, looking for an empty compartment. The train was surprisingly crowded for over half an hour before the scheduled departure time. At least, she assumed it was especially crowded. After all, she had no real basis for comparison, having never been on the train before. She found a compartment towards the middle of the train, pulled the door open, and lifted her trunk onto its shelf, suddenly very appreciative of the feather-light charm her father had insisted on casting on it before leaving.

With her baggage properly stowed, she pulled out her diary. Not her ordinary diary, but her dream diary. The one her mother had given her two years ago. She slowly flipping through the pages of her dream diary, pausing briefly on the first entry, written in her own shaky hand.

The Nightmare:

Seen: June 14th, Age 9

Occurred: June 21st, Age 9

The diary had slowly become populated with a half dozen entries, each a dream that seemed to be a little too real. The next dream was a few short months later. She and Ginny went outside in the snow. Ginny insisted on climbing a tree and fell, clutching her leg in pain. At the time, Luna dismissed it as an ordinary dream, but then, to her shock, it happened three days later. Another time, she dreamed was at Ginny's house while Percy walked around with a prefect's badge proudly displayed on his chest when a vase fell from an upper story window and shattered, lacerating his right arm. That occurred three months later. Ever since the first horrible nightmare, Luna carefully recorded all her dreams that seemed a bit too real. Sometimes it took days, weeks, or even months, but eventually, each and every one of those dreams happened.

It would have been frightening enough if it had been her dreams coming to pass, but they always ended with someone getting hurt. Sometimes seriously. It was almost like she was cursed.

Luna stared down at the most recent entry. The only one yet to occur.

She was walking down a hallway. (Hogwarts?) On her shoulder was a book bag filled with parchments of notes, class assignments, and half-finished essays. She turned into a room filled with books and tables. A library. Students in familiar robes were huddled over the tables. An elderly woman patrolled the library, glancing around for any sign of noise. These were all distractions for her. She didn't need to come to the library to finish her homework. She was here looking for someone. She spotted her target huddled over a table, her back turned to her.

She walked forward and glanced over her friend's shoulder. Her friend was writing in a small book, but her bright red hair blocked her view of the words. Instead, she pulled a chair up opposite her friend and said hello. Her friend's face jerked up while slamming the book closed. For a moment, she worried that her friend was angry at her. Her eyes drifted down to the book. It looked like simple black leather, but somehow, it glowed a shimmering green. It quickly started to spark. She could feel the emotions radiating from it. They came in waves, each one sending another stab of pain. She was drowning. Her head jerked away, and the realization hit her. The Book was angry at her. Luna looked back up to talk to her friend but froze when she met her eyes. The brown eyes were hard and cold. The green glow was there also. For a moment, there was something else in her friend's eyes.

She had the dream two weeks ago while she was traveling through Peru with her father looking for two headed Peruvian forest vipers (not to be confused with the Peruvian viper-tooth, a well-known species of dragon). She had considered sending Ginny a letter immediately to warn her but decided against it. Ginny would need an explanation, and Luna wasn't willing to share her dreams yet. She couldn't burden her friend with this. Ginny had already been hurt enough because of the dreams. Besides, Luna had made a promise.

Ginny probably wouldn't even believe her anyways. Even worse, Ginny might think Luna had gone crazy, despite being best friends for practically their entire lives. Her dreams were something she didn't share with anyone else. She had not even told her father, who would certainly believe her.

Her mother had known, and she had died as a direct result. Her mother had known and made her promise. She could never tell anyone. It would only make them hurt worse.

Instead, Luna would need to somehow convince Ginny without revealing the reason. Ginny had agreed to meet her for the train ride to Hogwarts when they had last spoken, before Luna's expedition with her father. All she had to do was warn Ginny about the book. That would prevent the dream and prove they can be changed. It was so simple. All she had to do was wait.


Ginny arrived right as the train was pulling out of the station. She smiled at the sight of her friend and rushed forward to give her a warm hug. "It's so nice to see you Luna. I have so much to tell you!"

"First, let's get your trunk into the compartment." Luna stood to help her pull the trunk and maneuver it onto the luggage rack.

"I want to hear all about your trip, but I have something I need to tell you first," Ginny said once they were settled in. "Guess who stayed with us for the past few weeks!"

"Uh… I don't know. Did Bill come back?"

"No. Guess again."

"Did the ghoul's family come back to visit?"

"No. I didn't even know he had a family."

"Of course, he does. He misses them terribly. You should go and try to talk to him sometimes."

Ginny gave her a glare.

"Fine. Did Charlie's friend come by to visit? The one with the color changing hair?"

"Who?"

"Well I guess not. Honestly, you might as well just tell me. I have no idea."

"Harry Potter!"

"What?!"

"Harry Potter stayed with us for the end of the summer," Ginny said, literally bouncing with excitement.

"I'm so glad for you. Did you get a chance to get to know him?" Luna asked, well aware of her friend's hero worship of the Boy-Who-Lived. Even Luna herself was a bit curious about the person behind all the myths.

"Uh… Not really."

"Huh?"

"I saw him a lot, but I didn't really talk to him at all," Ginny explained, blushing.

"Come on Ginny. That's not like you."

"I know. I didn't think it would be a problem. It's just… I was looking forward to meeting him all year when I finally got to Hogwarts, and then he was there one morning, sitting at the table eating breakfast. I was so shocked I just panicked. I probably made such a terrible first impression. I know I should have tried to talk to him anyways. Tom told me the same thing. I'm just so worried I will say something stupid."

"Ginny. You need to relax. Have a bit more confidence in yourself."

"I know. I know. Its only… you know. He is my hero. I don't want him to think badly of me."

"Just be yourself."

"I know. You're not the only one who has told me that. Just… How did we end up talking about me?"

"Well, you said…"

"I know how we got here, Luna. That was rhetorical. I just want to get back to what I wanted to tell you. Harry was getting on the train with Ron, right behind me. They probably found a compartment by now. Do you want to come meet him?"

"Sure," Luna replied. It would be nice to meet someone new. "Do you think I should wish him condolences for his parents?"

"Wait. What?!"

"His parents. I know it has been years, but I would have just met him. I could probably empathize with him better than a lot of other people he has met. Do you think he would appreciate it?"

"I don't think so." Ginny replied, still trying to process Luna's statement.

"You're probably right. He has probably moved on years ago and wouldn't appreciate the reminder."

"Sure. That's what I meant, I guess."

"Before we go, there is something I need to ask you. Have you ever seen a black leather book that is sort of… sentient?"

"What?" Ginny asked, her face suddenly becoming guarded as the excitement drained away.

"Like a book that has emotions. A book that can become angry. Have you seen one?"

"No. Why do you ask?"

"I just wanted to warn you to stay away from it if you ever come across one."

"Why?" Ginny said, her voice distinctly colder than before.

"Please Ginny. Just trust me. If you ever find a book like I described, please stay away from it."

"I'll keep it in mind," Ginny replied, "I'm going to go find Harry Potter. You can come if you want."

Luna followed Ginny down the corridor as she glanced into compartment after compartment for her older brother and his friend. Ginny was definitely angry at her. Luna knew she wouldn't respond well. She was always rebelling against rules and orders, especially those she did not understand. However, it would be worth it if Ginny listened to her warning. Ginny trusted her enough for that. The warning would be enough. Wouldn't it?


As it turned out, Ron and Harry Potter were nowhere to be found on the train. They spent almost an hour combing every carriage, but there was no sign of them. Luna initially suspected they had asked an older student (maybe Percy?) to put a notice-me-not charm on their compartment, but the number of compartments in each car was exactly the same. They even checked in the engine room in the front of the train, but only the driver was there. There was simply no sign of them. It was like they never got on the train, despite Ginny's confidence that they had been right behind her.

Ginny had calmed down by the time they returned to their seats and finished the bar of chocolate she purchased from Margery, the trolley lady. They spent the rest of the train ride talking about Luna's expedition to Peru and speculating on what Hogwarts would be like. This inevitably led to the same point that was on the minds of most of the other first years: Houses.

"I am just worried about which house I'll be in," Ginny moaned.

"You'll be in Gryffindor, just like the rest of your family," Luna replied with absolute certainty.

"I would have assumed that, until these last few weeks. I have been acting like an idiot. Like a coward."

"You are being too hard on yourself. You will definitely be in Gryffindor."

"I hope so… What about you? Which house do you think you'll be in?"

"Not sure. Where do you think?"

"Well, you have a creative and tricky sense of humor. Maybe Slytherin," Ginny said with a smirk.

"Speak for yourself. You are so much more devious than I am."

"Hey, look on the bright side. If you end up I Slytherin, I will probably be there too."

"Ginny!"

"Fine, not Slytherin. I could honestly see you in any of the other houses. You are kind enough for Hufflepuff, smart enough for Ravenclaw, and brave enough for Gryffindor."

"It's not worth it to argue, but I can only be in one house," Luna said.

"But you could fit most of them," Ginny sighed. "You know, there is probably a good chance we won't be in the same house."

"Yeah," Luna admitted.

"Well, a friend made a suggestion, and the more I think about it, he's are probably right." Ginny took a deep breath before continuing. "If we're in different houses, we're going to need to make new friends inside our houses."

"Right. But that doesn't change anything between us, right?"

"That's my point. I think we shouldn't hang out together for the first two weeks of school."

"What! Why?"

"If we are always together, then we will both feel left out of our houses. This way, we will make some friends quickly and then start hanging out together once school starts to pick up."

The two lapsed into silence for a few minutes before Luna asked, "Who is this friend of yours?"

"Hmm?"

"The friend who made this suggestion. I know almost everyone you know. It isn't your brothers since you wouldn't have used the word friend, so who is it?"

"It doesn't matter. Just drop it Luna."

"Is it Tom?"

"What?" Ginny asked, suddenly alarmed.

"Tom. You mentioned the name earlier, but I don't know anyone called Tom. Who is he?"

"Drop it Luna."

"Why won't you tell me?"

"Because it's none of your business."

"Second week. Library after lunch."

"Huh?"

"If we are not in the same house, you don't want to spend time together at the start of school. We'll meet in the library in the morning two weeks from now. Deal?" Luna asked, holding out her hand.

Ginny reached out and gave her hand a shake. "Deal."

When the train arrived in Hogsmead, te two friends left the train and followed the throng of other first years to gather around a very tall man who introduced himself as Rubeus Hagrid. He escorted them down to a dock where they set out in a fleet of small boats across a dark lake and got their first glimpses of Hogwarts.

The ride was spent in silence which Luna appreciated. Most of the first years were still processing, still in awe. This held while they disembarked and followed a stern woman who introduced herself as Professor McGonagall up to a tall doorway. They were asked to stand for a few minutes until she returned for them. As soon as the door closed behind her, the silence broke and the entire crowd of first years erupted into furious whispers, speculating on what would happen on the other side of the door, as had every other year before them.

Professor McGonagall returned shortly and escorted the first years down the central aisle of the Great Hall as all the other students watched. The first years stared at the candles hovering above the tables and the night sky projected onto the ceiling, but Luna's gaze was fixed on an old ripped wizard's hat sitting on a stool in front of what she surmised was the staff table. To their shock, the hat's brim opened, and it sang a long song about the attributes of each of the four houses.

The sorting began with Anderson, Robert who went to Hufflepuff and continued from there. What fascinated Luna was the instant the house was called, the insignia on his robes changed to the badger on yellow and black of Hufflepuff. Luna could not help but wonder what colors her robes would show in only a few short minutes.

Before long, she heard "Lovegood, Luna." She walked up to the platform and the Sorting Hat was placed on her head.

"Hello," Luna thought.

"Hello Ms. Lovegood," a voice replied in her head.

"I take it you are the Sorting Hat. So how does this work exactly?"

"Did you not listen to my song?"

"Oh. No. Of course I listened to it. You are very talented. Do you write a new one each year?"

"Yes. It is one of the few simple pleasures I have while sitting on the shelf for months."

"Are you lonely? Would you like me to come by and visit you? Is that possible?"

"Oh," the voice replied, the surprise evident in its voice. (Could it still be considered a voice if it was not spoken out loud?) "Thank you, but no need to trouble yourself. Also, yes. Consider this a voice. The semantics don't really matter that much. Yes, I can read your thoughts and even a bit deeper than that. Let's get back to the sorting, shall we? Do you have any requests?"

"Not really. All the houses seem nice."

"Well that's surprising. You really don't care where I put you, do you?"

"I mean, I would like to be put in a house where I can be both happy and do the best I can, but you said that that is where you try to put people. Right?"

"Yes."

"So… I guess I would be okay wherever you think is best. I really don't know where I should be sorted. I don't think I know myself well enough to make that decision. Is that alright?"

"It is quite alright. My job is to determine where you would best fit in. I asked since usually first years have some opinions, and I try to take those opinions into account. I find it is often helpful for you to verbalize those feelings. It is one of the first steps to self-reflection."

"Okay. Thank you for explaining."

"Well, let's get started, shall we? Let me see… You have a good mind and a big heart… a healthy amount of cunning… an impressive helping of bravery… You have known sorrow, but you are moving forward… Hmm… Well that is interesting…"

"What is?"

"Your dreams."

"Oh. What about them?"

"They are quite rare. It has been over two decades since I have sorted anyone with a similar… talent, for lack of a better word."

"Oh. Could you tell me who? I would love to meet her? Him? Whoever?"

"I'm sorry. I cannot disclose what I learn from another sorting. Even if I could, I happen to know that she has since passed away. I'm sure you can find someone else to talk to about them… However, we are getting off topic. The question is where to put you… Ah. That's it."

"What is?"

"What drives you, Ms. Lovegood?"

"I'm not sure what you mean."

"That's quite alright. In a few years, you will understand. Since you have had so many questions for me, do you have any others before I send you to your house?"

"No but thank you for satisfying my curiosity."

"Exactly." Luna was sure if the hat could, it would have winked at her. "In that case, better be…RAVENCLAW."

Luna took the hat off, handed it to the Professor, and looked over to Ginny standing in the crowd of first years. Ginny smiled at her and gave her a thumbs up. It was okay that they wouldn't be in the same house. Nothing would pull them apart. With a wide smile, Luna walked down to the cheering crowd of students in blue. The blue and bronze crest of Ravenclaw had replaced the Hogwarts crest on her robes.

Luna sat down with the other first year Ravenclaws in the cluster of empty seats halfway down the table. The rest of the sorting passed in a blur. She clapped when each student was called out and made room on the bench for the next Ravenclaw girl to sit next to her. Her focus was on one of the last to be sorted. Weasley, Ginny. She knew how it would go but was still thrilled for her friend when the hat called out "GRYFFINDOR." Her eyes met Ginny's and gave her a thumbs up and bright smile. It was what her friend wanted, and Luna knew there was no better place for her.

After the Headmaster's announcements, platters filled with food appeared on the plates, much to the startlement of many of the students. The roar of hundreds of conversations started to fill the hall. Luna turned to the girl next to her and introduced herself, "Hi. I'm Luna. What's your name?"

"Anne."

"Nice to meet you, Anne. What do you think of Hogwarts?"

"It's nice, I guess," Anne mumbled.

"I think so too. Do you have any siblings that went here?"

"No."

"Same. I'm an only child, but a friend of mine has six older brothers who have all come here. They say it is incredible. There is so much magic here, like you can almost reach out and touch it… Actually, of course you can touch it. The food in front of us just appeared, there are candles floating in the air above us, you can see the sky through a solid roof above us, and we both just put on a talking hat."

"I guess," Anne said with a smile.

Luna smiled back, "It's all pretty incredible right?"

"Yeah. I've never seen anything like this before."

"Are you from a magical family?"

"Not really."

Luna frowned, trying to puzzle out what that response meant, "So you are from a magical family that doesn't use magic?"

"No," Anne said with a blush, "My dad is a muggle and my Mum is a squib."

"Cool!" Luna replied, to Anne's shock, "Could you explain what a fellytone is? My friend's father is obsessed with all things muggle."

"A fellytone?"

"Yeah, a fellytone. Apparently, it kidnaps your voice. It looks kind of like a stretched-out U."

"Do you mean a telephone?"

"Maybe. The problem is I only sort of know what a fellytone is and have never heard of a telephone before. It sounds like something involving telepathy."

"Um… It's like a machine that lets you talk to someone far away. It carries your voice from your side, through wires, and to the person on the other side."

"Oh. Like a floo call."

"A floo?"

"Well, if a fireplace is connected to the floo network, you can throw some floo powder into it and turn the flames green. Then you just need to say where you want to go, and the floo takes you there. Some people use it to call also by only sticking their heads in it."

"That sounds pretty similar, only without the whole teleportation thing."

"If there is no teleportation, then why is it called a telephone?"

"I have honestly no idea."

"When did you learn about magic?" Luna asked. If Anne didn't know about the floo network but knew about things like telephones, it seemed likely that she grew up completely in the muggle world.

"When I got my letter."

"What was that like? I have always known I was a witch, but it must have been a shock for you. Did you think it was all a big joke?"

"Not really. My Dad thought it was a joke, but as soon as my Mum recognized it as soon as she saw the letter. She tried to explain it to us, but we thought she was crazy until my grandparents came over and proved us wrong. In hindsight, it explained a lot of strange things about them, like how they never knew how to use the microwave… and you probably have no idea what I am talking about anymore, do you?" Anne asked, feeling self-conscious again.

"No, but that's fine. What is a microwave?"

"It's a little box you can put food in to heat it up."

"Cool… or not cool. Hot maybe? Whenever we heat stuff up at home, we just use warming charms."

"It must be nice to be able to do magic. It probably makes things like chores much easier."

"I wouldn't know. We aren't allowed to do magic outside of school until we are of age."

"Oh. That's a bit disappointing."

"But hey, that's why we are here at school, right? So we can do magic without getting in trouble."

"Not to learn?"

"Well to learn also, but mainly to do magic without getting in trouble," Luna said with a smile.

Anne chuckled also, before sighing. "You seem like a nice person Luna. I'm glad we are in the same house."

"Me too, Anne."

"Oh, I should probably ask you. Do you like animals?"

"Of course!"

"Oh. Good. The school list said I could bring a pet, so I brought my little kitten Pumpernickel. He is only a couple months old, and I didn't want to leave him at home…"

"He sounds adorable. I would love to meet him."

"Good. That's a relief."

"Friends?" Luna asked, holding out her hand.

"Friends." Anne replied.


Tom!

Yes, Ginny?

You won't believe it! Ginny continued. She was crouched in her bed with the hangings pulled closed and a bottle of ink perched on her pillow. It had been an incredible day. I got sorted into Gryffindor.

Congratulations Ginerva. You wanted to be with the rest of your family. I am happy you got your wish.

I know you wanted me to go to a different house Tom, but can't you be happy for me?

I am happy for you. I only mentioned it earlier because you are always so upset by your brothers picking on you and leaving you out. Moving to a different house would show independence and move you out of their shadow. School can often be a fresh start, and I thought you should consider taking advantage of that.

I did think about it, but even the Sorting Hat agrees that I should be in Gryffindor. It's the best place for me.

I do not doubt that. If you are happy, I am happy.

Thank you, Tom.

You are perfectly welcome Ginny. How was the feast?

Excellent… although the food wasn't quite as good as Mum's. Ginny added loyally.

I am sure. I have often observed that people prefer the familiarity of home cooking over the school meals, no matter how well prepared. How were your new year mates?

Well… I didn't really talk to them that much. I mainly sat with my brothers. They were so happy for me getting in. Do you think I made a mistake?

Absolutely not. You have seven years to get to know your classmates. Your first year at school is always stressful. Your dorm mates will find it difficult as well. It may be best to focus on trying to become comfortable yourself first and getting to know them later. If sitting with your brothers and listening to their stories makes you comfortable, then I fully support it. Of course, I am always here for you to talk to during meals if you ever feel lonely.

Thank you, Tom. You're a good friend.

It is no trouble at all Ginny. It is why I am here, after all.

Tom?

Yes?

You mentioned before that you "observed" people like home cooking better than school meals. What did you mean?

I was an orphan Ginny. I have never had a homecooked meal.

I am so sorry Tom!

There is nothing that can be done. It is the lot I was born with, and I know no other. Besides, it is not as if I can eat as a diary.

Oh. Well I'm still sorry. You must have thought I was being terrible before complaining about my brothers when you don't have a family.

You did not know, so I will not hold it against you.

Thank you for being so understanding Tom… It's getting kind of late, so I think I will turn in. I think everyone else in my dorm is already asleep.

Goodnight Ginerva.

Goodnight Tom.