When the sun rose on September first, Jacob was still missing, and Grace had no idea where he had gone. She was certain her parents knew something- she had often heard them talking to each other in hushed voices- but they always stopped as soon as they noticed her.
Grace looked at her trunk, which was at the foot of her bed. The day after her trip to Diagon Alley, she'd neatly packed all of the things she'd bought. But the packed trunk didn't fill her with the same excitement as the empty one had just a few weeks ago. Her eagerness to go to Hogwarts was overshadowed by the worry she felt for Jacob.
She walked downstairs to see her parents having another one of their secretive discussions at the living room table.
Her father stopped talking and turned to look at her as she walked down the stairs. "Good morning, Grace," he said. His expression and tone were serious. That was new. Normally he greeted her with a smile and tried to pretend nothing was wrong.
He pulled out a chair. "Have a seat. Your mother and I need to talk to you."
Grace sat. "Is this about Jacob?" she asked. Was she finally going to be told the meaning of all of her parents' mysterious conversations?
"Yes. It is," her father confirmed. "We think we know why he disappeared."
"You do? Then why didn't you tell me before?" Grace burst out.
"We didn't tell you because we didn't know," her father said. "Jacob was careful to keep his actions at school from us, and we were only informed of the circumstances leading to his expulsion a few days ago."
"Expulsion?" Grace asked.
"Jacob searched for the Cursed Vaults while he was at Hogwarts. He was blamed for unleashing curses on the school, and expelled at the end of last year," her father explained.
"What are the Cursed Vaults?" Grace asked.
"All anyone knows is that they're a series of secret chambers constructed in the school that are protected by very powerful curses. There are countless theories surrounding the construction of the vaults, the reason for their creation, and even whether or not they exist, but we don't have time to discuss those right now," he answered.
"So how does that tell you where Jacob went?" Grace asked impatiently.
Her father's left hand twitched, a sign that he was nervous or stressed about something. "We believe Jacob has returned to Hogwarts to continue his search for the Cursed Vaults. We need you to keep an eye out for clues," he finished.
"Can I ask Rowan for help?" Grace suggested. With all of her historical knowledge, Rowan might know more about the Cursed Vaults.
"No," he answered firmly. "We don't want anyone finding out about this who doesn't already know."
Her mother, who had been sitting silently the entire time her father was talking, broke in. "As long as you both promise not to tell anyone else, you can tell Rowan. Two sets of eyes are better than one," she offered.
"Fine," her father relented. "But tell no one else."
"I promise," Grace said solemnly.
Her mother checked her watch before rising from the table. "Be ready to leave at half-past ten. You want to get to the station early so you and your friend have time to find a compartment."
Grace quickly ate her breakfast before returning to her room. She wanted to continue reading Hogwarts; A History.
An hour later, she took a break from reading. Her head was swimming with facts she had only half-absorbed. Hogwarts; A History, while very informative, had a dry and dull writing style. She couldn't see how Rowan had made it through the massive book seventeen times.
She spent the rest of the time reading a far more interesting book, All the Wonders of the World, which was about a Magizoologist who had set out to take a picture of every species of magical creature in the world. Unfortunately, he hadn't succeeded. He'd been killed by a cockatrice in France.
Finally, her mother came up to her room. Grace opened her trunk and jammed Hogwarts; A History and All the Wonders of the World on top of a pile of textbooks before closing the trunk.
Her mother checked a round device which showed an array of red dots. The device was used to Apparate to crowded locations. When her mum pressed the small green button on the device, the two of them would Apparate to an empty area of Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. As Grace watched, one of the dots flicked to green, which meant that there was an empty area for them to Apparate to.
"Let's go," her mother said. "Hold onto your trunk."
Grace placed a hand on her trunk. Her mother firmly gripped her arm, using her free hand to press the button on the device.
Grace hated traveling by Floo Powder, but she hated Side-Along Apparating far more. It felt like someone was stretching her out and forcibly jamming her down a tube far too small for her until she reached her destination.
When she opened her eyes, they were in an area at the back of Platform Nine and Three-Quarters with a grid of black lines on the floor. At the front of the square they were in was a red light. As soon as they had stepped out of the square, the light turned green.
Grace searched for Rowan in the gathering crowd. They were early, but so were lots of other people. Finally, she located Rowan's dark hair in the crowd and made a beeline for it, muttering, "excuse me" to people as she pushed past them.
Rowan's entire family had come to the platform- her parents, her brother, and one new addition.
"You got an owl!" Grace exclaimed. The owl was in a cage on top of Rowan's trunk. It had gray feathers and watched her with sharp yellow eyes.
"We bought him after you left," Rowan explained. "His name is Twilight."
The mention of their trip to Diagon Alley made her think of Jacob. The smile dropped from her face. Jacob should have been with her, entering his sixth year at Hogwarts. She had expected that he would show her around Hogwarts when they arrived. Now that wouldn't happen.
Rowan noticed the change in her expression. "Is something wrong?" she asked.
"I'll talk to you on the train. Let's go before all the compartments fill up," Grace said, grabbing her trunk and walking purposefully towards the train. Rowan followed with her trunk and Twilight's cage.
They walked nearly halfway down the train, but every compartment already had people in it. Finally, they stopped and pulled their trunks into an empty compartment. Rowan took one end of Grace's trunk, helping her heave it onto the luggage racks above their head. Then they lifted Rowan's trunk onto the racks.
"So, what did you want to talk about?" Rowan asked as soon as they had sat down, Twilight's cage next to her.
"My brother disappeared," Grace started. Quickly, she explained everything that had happened, how she had waited for Jacob but he'd never returned from Diagon Alley, as well as everything her parents had told her. "I need your help to look for clues about what might have happened to him. And we need to find information about the Cursed Vaults."
"I don't remember reading anything about the Cursed Vaults, but we can look in the library once we reach Hogwarts. You said that no one knows anything about them for sure?"
When Grace nodded, Rowan continued, "Then it's no wonder there's nothing about them in Hogwarts; A History. We'll need to look for more... mystical books. Legends, that sort of thing."
"We could also try talking to the older students. They might know something, since they were at Hogwarts at the same time as Jacob," Grace suggested.
Rowan looked hesitant. "You can do that. I'll be in charge of the research."
Grace agreed. As much as she wanted to find Jacob, she knew that Rowan would have an easier time of searching through the library and scanning through countless books than she would. It made sense for both of them to utilize their strengths.
With secrets shared and plans formed, Grace relaxed and allowed Rowan to lead the conversation. Rowan might have been reluctant to speak with unfamiliar students, but she had no qualms about rambling to Grace about anything she could think of. Grace listened to a long lecture about Great Gray Owls, as well as facts about wand woods and their properties. She learned that creatures called bowtruckles lived in the trees at Rowan's farm, and that her family had a cat named Fuzzclaw.
As they drew closer to Hogwarts and the sun started to set, the conversation turned to the four houses of Hogwarts.
"I hope we're in the same house," Rowan said. "I want to be in Ravenclaw."
Grace wanted to be in Rowan's house, but she didn't think Ravenclaw would be a good fit for her. She wasn't brimming with enthusiasm for any kind of learning like Rowan was, and books had never held her interest. But then, what house would be a good fit for her? Hufflepuff? Slytherin? Gryffindor, like Jacob? She considered the three houses while Rowan launched into a long list of facts about Ravenclaw's history.
"What about you, Grace? What house do you want?" Rowan asked, evidently done with her most recent burst of information. Grace hadn't been paying attention, too busy thinking of an answer to the question Rowan had just asked.
"I don't really like books, no one wants to go to Slytherin anymore because of the Death Eaters, and Hufflepuff just... doesn't feel like my thing. So I guess that leaves Gryffindor," Grace answered unenthusiastically. In truth, she didn't feel like she belonged in any of the houses.
Before long, the train slowed. The two of them pulled their trunks down from the overhead racks and quickly changed into their robes.
The train stopped entirely. They left their compartment, leaving their trunks behind, although Rowan took Twilight's cage. Jacob had told Grace that their luggage would be taken to the castle for them, and left in their assigned dormitory.
Outside the train, students crowded together, many talking to friends. They were at a train station, and Grace couldn't see a castle in any direction. How were they going to get to Hogwarts?
"Firs' years! Firs' years over here!" A voice shouted over the noise of the crowd. The source of the voice wasn't hard to locate; it came from a man twice as tall as any of the students. Grace started towards the man, who she recognized from Jacob's stories as Rubeus Hagrid, the groundskeeper. She was followed closely by Rowan.
Hagrid led the group of first-years away from the older students. They walked until they reached the shore of a lake. Bobbing gently in the rippling water were a fleet of small boats.
"No more'n four to a boat," Hagrid warned.
The students separated into the little boats. Grace and Rowan took a boat together. When everyone else had climbed into the boats, there were two students left standing on the shore; a boy with brown hair and round features who was casting a nervous look at the rocking boats, and a girl with pale hair and even paler skin, who just looked like she wanted to get away from everyone. Grace waved to them. After a moment's hesitation, they walked over and joined them in the boat.
When the girl and the boy were settled into the boat, the entire fleet started gliding across the surface of the lake. The boat cut a trail through the black water, leaving ripples spreading in their wake.
No one said a word as they sailed across the lake, which suited Grace just fine. She was glad for a moment of silence after hours of energetic discussion.
Eventually, the boats turned a corner. Grace looked up from the surface of the lake when she heard the gasps of other students. Perched on top of a cliff in front of them was a massive castle, with towers rising hundreds of feet into the air.
Rowan's hand gripped hers, giving it an excited squeeze. She squeezed back, grinning as a tide of joy rose in her. She had waited years for this moment, and now it was finally here.
The castle sailed through a hole in the cliff that had been covered by a curtain of ivy into a dark tunnel. At the end of the tunnel, the boats stopped at a small harbor, deep within the cliff. The first-years climbed out of the boats.
"This way," Hagrid called. They followed him up a stone staircase, emerging into the night air. In front of them was a massive wooden door. Hagrid lifted his hand and knocked three times on the door.
After the sound of his knocking had died away, the doors swung open.
"The firs' years, Professor Flitwick," Hagrid said to someone by the door. Grace couldn't see who he was talking to. She stood on tiptoe and craned her neck to see over the other students, finally catching sight of a tiny man in the doorway.
"This way, please!" Professor Flitwick squeaked, setting off down the corridor. The first-years followed him.
Not far from where they had entered the castle, Grace saw tables full of older students. Professor Flitwick led them past the hall to a smaller room beside it. At the front of the room was a stack of large books, which Professor Flitwick climbed on top of.
"Welcome to Hogwarts!" the tny professor squeaked. "I'm sure you're all eager to go to the Welcoming Feast, but first you have to be Sorted into your Houses. There are four houses, as I'm sure most of you know- Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, and Slytherin. I'm the head of Ravenclaw house. I hope to see you there!"
His speech over, Professor Flitwick jumped down from the stack of books and left the room. As soon as he was gone, nervous whispers filled the room. Jacob had refused to tell Grace how they would be Sorted, insisting that it was a secret, and it seemed everyone else's siblings had done the same. No one knew what would happen next.
"I hope I'm not Sorted into Slytherin," Grace heard one student whisper to his friend.
His friend shuddered. "I think I'd leave Hogwarts if I was a Slytherin. My parents would let me go to a foreign school."
The room quieted suddenly, and Grace could only assume that Professor Flitwick had returned. "Form a line and follow me into the Great Hall!" he squeaked.
Grace lined up behind the two boys who had been whispering earlier, and Rowan fell into step behind her. The line of first-years walked out of the small room into the Great Hall.
The line came to a halt on a wooden dais at the front of the hall. In the center of the dais was a wooden stool with a patched, worn old hat perched on it. The rest of the hall was filled with four long tables, each filled with students. Grace looked behind her. They were in front of the staff table. In the center of the staff table, on an ornate golden chair, sat a woman in emerald green robes. Grace realized that she must be Professor McGonagall, the Headmistress.
"When I call your name, step forward and try on the Sorting Hat to be Sorted into your houses," Professor Flitwick squeaked. Grace turned around. So that was the mysterious Sorting method. She was disappointed. After all the secrecy, she had expected something far more exciting.
"Ali, Badeea!" Professor Flitwick called. A girl with a blue hijab left the middle of the line and walked towards the stool with the Sorting Hat. She picked up the hat and sat down before placing the hat on her head.
For a few moments, there was silence. Then a large tear near the brim of the hat opened and shouted, "RAVENCLAW!"
The second table from the let out loud cheers. Badeea replaced the Sorting Hat on the stool and hurried to join the other Ravenclaws, sliding into an empty seat at the end of the table.
"Caplan, Diego!" Professor Flitwick called next. A boy near the front of the line tried on the hat.
"HUFFLEPUFF!" the Sorting Hat called. This time, the second table from the left cheered. Caplan grinned as he joined his new Housemates.
"Copper, Ben" the boy who had been in their boat, surprised Grace by becoming the first Gryffindor. "Egwu, Andre" joined Badeea in Ravenclaw.
A few more names were called, including the first Slytherin, a slight boy named Ethan Kane, and then it was Rowan's turn. She practically ran to the hat, jamming it eagerly onto her head. Before she even had a chance to sit down, the hat made its decision. "RAVENCLAW!" it shouted. Grace wasn't surprised.
The line shrank as name after name was called. Sometimes the Sorting Hat shouted out a house almost instantly, like it had with Rowan. Other times, it took several minutes. Jae Kim sat on the stool for what felt like hours before finally being Sorted into Gryffindor.
The line shrank to just five people. "Parkin, Skye" joined the Gryffindors to an enthusiastic round of cheers and applause. Then it was Grace's turn.
She walked forward and picked up the Sorting Hat. Before placing it on her head, she hesitated. Did the Sorting Hat take requests? She wanted to be in the same house as Rowan. It was worth a try, she decided.
Gingerly, she placed the Sorting Hat on her head. The brim fell over her eyes, blocking out the Great Hall.
What shall I do with you? the Sorting Hat whispered in her head before she could form a request.
I want to be in Ravenclaw, Grace thought as hard as she could.
I do take requests sometimes, but not when it's obvious that a student doesn't belong in the house they choose. And you do not belong in Ravenclaw, the Sorting Hat dismissed.
Grace's heart sank. So she was going to be separated from Rowan after all. It had been worth a try.
Let's see, let's see... deeply loyal to your friends, plenty of courage... Oh, yes, I know where you belong, the Sorting Hat whispered.
"SLYTHERIN!" it shouted to the Great Hall. Grace jumped. Whatever she had been expecting the Sorting Hat to decide, it had most definitely not been Slytherin.
She pulled off the Sorting Hat and walked over to the Slytherin table.
Merula Snyde was next to be Sorted. She went to Slytherin, and so did Liz Tuttle. Finally, Talbott Winger became a Ravenclaw.
Professor Flitwick rolled up the scroll before taking his seat at the staff table. Grace's stomach rumbled. She hoped the feast would start soon.
To her annoyance, Professor McGonagall rose. "I'm sure you are all eager for the feast to begin, but I have a few words to say first," she began. "Five years ago, this school was the site of a great battle, in which Lord Voldemort was defeated by Harry Potter."
Grace shivered at the sound of the evil wizard's name. It may have been years since he had died, but it would take many more years for fear of him to fade.
"Some of our older students will remember that battle, although they were too young to have joined in the fighting. Great things have come from the defeat of Lord Voldemort. Laws are being changed to undo the damage that he did. Muggleborns are no longer discriminated against. More importantly, the houses here at Hogwarts are united, just as the founders meant for them to be," Professor McGonagall said.
An older boy next to Grace snorted. He had a green and silver badge on his robes that Grace knew marked him as a prefect.
She looked at him. "What's so funny?"
"Maybe the other three houses have grown closer, but Slytherin isn't united with anyone. No one here had any part in the war, and yet the other students treat us like we're all going to grow up to be Death Eaters," he said. "I don't think I've heard a student from another house say so much as a friendly word to a Slytherin. Either they insult us, or they stay away."
"My friend is a Ravenclaw," Grace protested.
"She won't be your friend for long," the boy gloomily predicted.
While they were talking, the table had filled up with an array of delicious looking foods. Grace only picked at them, troubled by what the boy had said. Rowan wouldn't turn on her, would she? If she made friends in her own house, and if she was discouraged from associating with Slytherins enough, she might. As selfish of a wish as it was, Grace hoped that Rowan wouldn't get along with the other Ravenclaws. Then she would have to stay Grace's friend.
To distract herself from her thoughts, she focused on the conversation the other first-years were having. Slytherin hadn't gotten as many first-years as the other houses- only three boys and four girls. Barnaby Lee, Ethan Kane, and a quiet boy with messy hair and patched robes named Sam Brooks were the boys. For the girls, there was Grace, obviously, as well as Merula Snyde, Liz Tuttle, and Ismelda Murk.
The others were discussing why the Sorting Hat had placed them in Slytherin. "I just asked for anything except Gryffindor. I don't want to be in the same house as my sister," Ismelda said with a scowl. She had pale skin and dark hair, half of which hung in her face. Grace wondered how it didn't bother her.
"It was inevitable that I would be put into Slytherin, given..." Merula started. In the middle of her sentence she clammed up and refused to say anything else. Grace wondered what the end of her sentence would have been. Given what?
"I asked to be put in Slytherin," Barnaby said. "My parents told me to."
When it was her turn to speak, Grace shared the Sorting Hat's puzzling decision. "It seemed like it was going to put me in Gryffindor or Hufflepuff, but then it decided on Slytherin."
"I'm going to be Minister for Magic after I graduate. Then the other houses will have to respect us," Ethan said. He glared at them all defiantly, as if daring them to disagree with him. No one did.
Liz seemed just as confused as Grace as to why she was in Slytherin. "I'm not really ambitious," she said with a frown.
Sam looked up from his plate, which he had been staring at during the whole meal. "I didn't ask for Slytherin, but I didn't ask not to be placed here. I didn't know to ask for anywhere else."
"Are you a Muggleborn?" the older boy who Grace had talked to before asked. He stared at Sam with undisguised fascination.
"Yes," Sam said. He looked back down at his plate, seeming overwhelmed by the other boy's interest in him.
"There hasn't been a Muggleborn in Slytherin in fifty years," the older boy breathed.
At the end of the meal, the older boy rose. He introduced himself as Felix Rosier. His name sounded familiar to Grace, but she couldn't place why. He instructed the first-years to follow him to the Slytherin common room.
Felix led them down into the dungeons. Finally he stopped near a section of wall that looked identical to every other part of the wall to Grace.
"To get in, you need a password. If you forget the password, ask one of the older students to tell it to you," Felix instructed. He turned towards the wall. "Unitum ante ruinam."
A section of the wall swung open. The first-years followed him into the common room. The common room was dimly lit. There was a roaring fire in the fireplace but it did little to lift the gloom of the room. Scattered around the room were green armchairs, some grouped around tables. One entire wall was filled with glass, providing a view of murky water and the fish swimming through it. The lake gave the room a greenish glow that contributed to a creepy atmosphere.
Before long, the first-years started yawning and decided to go to their dorm. Grace followed the other first-year girls up a staircase in the corner of the room, while the boys walked up a staircase across from them.
The first door they came across was labeled with a large sign that read FIRST-YEAR GIRLS. Merula, who had taken the lead, pushed open the door and the others followed her in.
Inside the dorm were four four-poster beds with emerald green curtains and bedding. The pillowcases and sheets were a lighter shade of green, and the pillowcases had silver embroidery. Their trunks had been placed at the foot of the beds. Grace found her trunk- it was the one farthest from the door- and pulled out her pajamas.
After she had changed, she climbed into bed. It was a long time before she fell asleep. Thoughts whirled through her head, of Jacob, of what she could do to find him, of her classes which would start the next day, and just how difficult being a Slytherin would make her life at Hogwarts.