The fountain in the center of the courtyard spurts water into the air. The gentle sound of splashing is the only thing that breaks the silence. The pool is surrounded by four statues of dragons, wings flared and heads raised proudly. One of the four pillars has been snapped off, perhaps broken in some long-ago battle. On the far side of the courtyard, a branch stretches out horizontally. Normally at least one person is perched on it, but today it's empty. The sky glitters with stars, lit by the white light of a gibbous moon. Not quite full, a circle with a slice missing. How my life has been for two years.
Underneath the moon, staring up with his hands clasped behind his back, is Professor Dumbledore. He's dressed in purple robes adorned with gold stars. His black boots peek out beneath the hem.
"Professor?" There's no response. I walk until I'm standing next to him. His gaze doesn't waver, still trained on the stars above.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Professor Dumbledore still doesn't look at me.
"Sir?" Why is he so fixated on the sky?
"The quiet night, the crisp air... It truly puts your troubles into perspective, doesn't it?"
I don't respond to this. It's an odd thing to say, but then, the headmaster has always been odd.
"I often come here when I need to make an important decision," Professor Dumbledore continues.
"Madam Pomfrey said I had to talk to you about everything I've done wrong this year," I finally say to steer the conversation in the direction I expected it to take.
"Wrong... who gets to decide what's right and what's wrong? It's all a matter of perspective," Professor Dumbledore says. "Tell me, do you think you were in the wrong?"
I think. Does anyone ever believe they're doing the wrong thing? "I broke the rules, but I did it for a reason."
"Yes, I know you had your reasons, and still have them. That's why I wanted to speak with you," Professor Dumbledore says. "I know that you will not abandon your pursuit of the Cursed Vaults, no matter how much I punish you."
"Does this mean you aren't going to punish me?" I ask, although I'm not holding my breath. It seems unlikely that I'll be expelled, but detention seems inevitable.
"No. On the contrary, I believe that you have earned one hundred points for Ravenclaw." I do the inside my head and figure out that we're in first place now, although there's still time for the other houses to catch up.
"I feel as if you want to ask me something," Professor Dumbledore says, peering at me over the lenses of his half-moon glasses.
"Why was my brother expelled?" The question slips out before I can consider it. I already know the answer, but I just want to hear it confirmed, hear Professor Dumbledore say it.
"You saved Hogwarts; your brother endangered it. I was very intrigued by your brother, but he left me no choice. It is my hope that you will discover more about his choices in the years to come."
The years to come... Earlier today, I thought I'd never hear those words. I thought for sure I would leave on the Hogwarts Express with my friends, but unlike them, I would never return. Now, the ever-elusive hope has returned. "Do you know how many vaults there are, professor?"
"No one knows for certain, but most sources seem to agree that there are five vaults. There is very little information other than that." Professor Dumbledore gives me a sympathetic look. "You have a very long and difficult road in front of you."
I clench my fists by my sides. "I'm ready."
Professor Dumbledore smiles softly, understanding in his blue eyes. "I'm sure you are. Now, go find your friends. I believe Madam Pomfrey will be releasing Miss Khanna at about this time."
I run off, looking back over my shoulder before I leave the courtyard. "Thank you again, Professor Dumbledore. For not expelling me. And for the house points."
Professor Dumbledore just smiles.
I reach the Hospital Wing a few minutes before Rowan leaves. The door is still closed. There's no way for me to know she hasn't already left, but I stay by the door for a while. It never hurts to double check.
The door opens, and I smile at the sight of my best friend, now with a bandage wrapped around her hand. "How does your hand feel?"
Rowan opens and closes her hand experimentally. "It barely hurts. Madam Pomfrey says curse wounds always take longer to heal."
"That's good." There isn't really anything else to say, so we walk in silence for a while.
"How did your meeting with Professor Dumbledore go?" Rowan asks after a while. "Did you punish you?"
"No," I say. "It was weird. He gave me one hundred house points."
"One hundred?!" Rowan gasps. "I don't think anyone's gotten that many at a time before!" She insists that we take a detour to check the House Cup standings before returning to the common room. As I expected, Ravenclaw is now in first. Slytherin and Hufflepuff are tied for second, and Gryffindor is in last. There's still plenty of time for that to change, though.
Rowan gives me a high-five with her good hand. We resume our walk to the Ravenclaw common room, bumping into Ben on the way.
He looks even more nervous than usual, his hands rubbing his arms as if he's cold, his eyes darting back and forth as if he's expecting someone to attack him. But as alert as he appears, he still seems startled to see us. "Hey Rowan, Celena."
His eyes widen when he sees Rowan's hand. "How did you get hurt?"
"We got trapped in the room when ice covered the door, so we had to punch it," Rowan explains. "It's just a cut. I'm fine."
Ben still looks concerned, but he joins us as we walk. "Penny or Alana hasn't told you what happened?" I ask.
"No. I just left the Quidditch match."
"Is it over already?" I ask.
"Yeah. I don't know who won, though. I didn't pay much attention." Ben has relaxed slightly, his movements no longer quite so furtive.
"Come on. We'll explain everything." Rowan leads us to the Room of Requirement. I let her take the lead in explaining as well. She's better at this kind of thing than me.
When it's time to take our exams, Ravenclaw is still in first for the house cup. Slytherin has edged ahead of Hufflepuff, who is now tied with Gryffindor.
For each exam, we have to take a written test before demonstrating something we've learned. For Transfiguration, that means writing the Transfiguration alphabet and equation as Professor McGonagall calls us up to her desk one by one.
I look up when Rowan's name is called. I try to look encouraging. It's all I can do in the middle of an exam.
Some time later, Professor McGonagall calls my name, and I join her at her desk. There's a match on the desk, as well as a mouse, which Professor McGonagall is trapping with one of her hands.
Thankfully, she pushes the match towards me first. "Turn this into a needle for me, Miss Serantos," she instructs.
I take a deep breath. This is the first Transfiguration we learned. It's easy. I can do this. I wave my wand, and the match turns silvery and metal.
"Now turn this mouse into a snuffbox."
I mutter a quick apology to the mouse, not caring what Professor McGonagall thinks. My snuffbox isn't perfect, since I avoided working on this Transfiguration outside of class- it still has whiskers.
I return to my seat, glad that the hardest exam is over. I'm confident in my answers on the written exam, so my grade should still be good.
The Potions practical consists of brewing a Forgetfulness Potion while Professor Snape sweeps around the room, watching us all. He's intimidating, and I see a few people drop their ingredients.
Professor Gibson is almost the complete opposite. He sits behind his desk, reading and paying no attention to us as we work. He can't even be bothered to give us a practical exam.
Exams end with the Astronomy practical, which takes place at midnight on a Wednesday. We spend two hours filling out a star chart under a clear sky. When we've finished, Professor Sinistra collects our star charts, and exams are over.
The last week is spent in relaxation as we wait for the professors to finish grading.
The day we get our results back, the five of us gather near the lake. Penny hasn't been able to spend much time with us, always pulled away by one group or another. Today, though, she shooed them all away.
"All Os," Rowan says proudly after scanning through her grades. "So no matter what subject I decide to teach, I'll be prepared."
I smile at Rowan's determination and look through my own grades. "All Os except for an E in Transfiguration." It's what I expected after my snuffbox had whiskers.
"I got an O in Charms," Ben says. "That's all I'm telling you."
Penny and Alana refuse to reveal any of their grades, but Rowan and I don't push them.
Penny is finally pulled away by a group of the other Hufflepuff girls. As soon as she's gone, Skye takes her place. I've tutored her several times since that first lesson, on Wingardium Leviosa and other spells. It takes her a while to get the hang of some things, but she applies the same dedication she uses in Quidditch during our tutoring sessions.
"I got an A in Charms," Skye says. "That means I can try out for the team next year."
It's the closest I'm going to get to a thank-you. Skye gave me permission to tell my friends that I tutor her, but I know it embarrasses her. "That's great, Skye!"
"I'd like to keep working with you next year, though," Skye says. "If you don't mind."
"Of course I don't mind." Between my classwork, tutoring Skye, and searching for the Cursed Vaults, my second year is going to be busy. I wonder how I'll manage to make time for everything.
There'll be time to plan later. For now, it's time to relax, with no pressing problems hanging over me.
The last few days pass quickly, and before I know it, it's time for the end-of-year feast.
Professor Dumbledore stands at the Head Table. I spot a few students looking longingly at the delicious spread of food in front of us. My stomach rumbles.
"I know you are all eager to sink your teeth into our delicious feast, but I'm afraid I must ask that you abstain for a minute," Professor Dumbledore says with a hint of laughter in his voice. "First, the House Cup needs awarding."
Suddenly the food is forgotten as everyone looks at Professor Dumbledore. I honestly don't really care about the House Cup- so Ravenclaws raised their hands the most, how amazing- but I'm still curious to hear the results.
"In fourth place, Gryffindor with 3,926 points." Is it my imagination, or does Professor Dumbledore sound a little annoyed by Gryffindor's performance?
"In third place, Hufflepuff with 3,976 points." The Hufflepuff table cheers, looking happy with their place.
"In second place, Slytherin with 4,010 points." I definitely am not imagining the sour expression on Professor Snape's face, although knowing him, it could be from anything.
"And in first place, Ravenclaw with 4,100 points!" Professor Dumbledore waves his wand, and suddenly the Great Hall is decorated in the blue and bronze banners of Ravenclaw. The rest of our house jumps up and starts screaming at the top of their lungs. Rowan, Alana, and I exchange amused looks and cheer a few times.
A second-year near us pauses in his cheering to glare at us. "We won! Aren't you excited?"
"Of course we are," I assure him. And it's true. I'm excited, not just for my house, but for me. For what I've accomplished this year. Before I met Rowan, I thought I would never make a friend here. Now I have four.
And I still have six more years, and so much more to do.
A/N: So with that, Celena's first year is over! I have a lot planned for the later years, so I'm excited to move on. I'm also thinking about making an actual cover. Any ideas?