Chapter 2: Start of Term

The rest of the summer vacation passed by in a blur as Dawn and Willow trained with Dumbledore in the use of their wands.

It was the start of term and Dawn was late for the start of term feast. She happened to look out the window of hers and Willow's room when she spotted a flying car. And then suddenly she gasped out as a memory flooded her mind. She had not had any new memories from Tom's reality since the final battle in Sunnydale. She was sure though that this was a memory from Tom's reality. This one confused her slightly as it was a mixture of words coupled with images. Maybe a movie based off a book?

The memory told her the car was about to hit the Whomping Willow.

Dawn watched as the nose of the car dropped. It was falling, gathering speed, heading straight for the solid castle wall. And then it missed the dark stone wall next to her window by inches as the car turned in a great arc, soaring over the dark greenhouses, then the vegetable patch, and then out over the black lawns, losing altitude all the time.

And then … CRUNCH.

Dawn grimaced at the sound of metal on wood as the car hit the thick tree trunk and dropped to the ground with a heavy jolt. She pictured the car and opened a portal stepping through it as the car dumped Harry, Ron Weasley and their belongings on the ground before driving off.

"Harry!" Dawn said shocked to see Harry there.

"Who are you?" Ron asked afraid that they were about to get in trouble.

"She's a friend of that new aunt I told you about," Harry said as he looked at Dawn. "How did you get here so fast?"

Dawn smiled. "Easy," she said as she opened a portal to Gryffindor Tower and pushed Harry and Ron's belongings through. She then let the portal close and opened another this time to the entry hall. "Through quickly before someone sees how you arrived."

Harry and Ron looked at each other and then hesitantly stepped through the portal just as Filch was coming at them. Dawn waved to Filch and then followed the boys through the portal closing it behind her.

"How can you do that?" Harry asked.

"Magic," Dawn said.

"But you didn't even use a wand," Ron said.

"Now all magic requires a wand," Dawn said. "Into the Great Hall, we're missing the feast."

They walked into the Great Hall and Dawn motioned for the boys to sit down as she made her way to the front of the hall and sat next to Willow. They watched as the First Years were sorted

After the feast Dawn watched as Harry and Ron were pulled aside in an adjoining room by Severus Snape, the potions master. She glanced at Willow and followed McGonagall and Dumbledore into the room.

McGonagall raised her wand the moment she entered and pointed it at the empty fireplace, where flames suddenly erupted. "Sit," she said, and both Harry and Ron backed into chairs by the fire.

"Explain," she said, her glasses glinting ominously.

"I can explain," Dawn said.

McGonagall and Snape looked to Dawn surprised to see her there.

"I brought them to school," she said.

"And how did you manage that?" Snape asked.

Dawn smiled as she opened a portal and stepped through it to the other side of the room.

"How did you manage that?" Snape asked with a frown. "No one can apparate inside the grounds of Hogwarts."

"That was not apparition," a voice said. "That was a portal created by the Key. Something far older than the wards that surround this castle. Something that when the wards were created had not been planned for."

They turned to see Dumbledore standing in the doorway.

"Far older?" Snape asked.

"It's believed that the Key is as old as time itself," Dawn said. "Of course I was told that by a hell god so I don't know if there is any truth to that."

"As interesting as that is," McGonagall said. "Why were you needed to get them?"

"Boys," Dawn said.

Ron told them about the barrier at the station refusing to let them through.

"Then Willow got an owl from Harry," Dawn said. "Telling us what had happened."

"How did the Whomping Willow get damaged?" Snape asked.

"I portaled too close to the tree, it didn't like it," Dawn said. "And being a Slayer I can fight back."

"Innocent till proven guilty, Severus," Dumbledore said.

After Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape had left, Dawn turned to Harry and Ron. "You two are lucky I saw you arrive. You would have been in hot water otherwise," she said.

"We know," Harry said. "By the way what are you and Willow doing here?"

"We're teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts," Dawn said.

"Ah, Professor," Harry said.

"Get on up to bed," Dawn said. "If anyone asks, I detained you and if they have a problem should report to me."

Harry and Ron turned and left the room as Willow joined her.

"What happened?" Willow asked.

"They flew a magical car," Dawn said. "Into that Whomping Willow tree on the grounds. I got to them via portal before anyone else could. Will, it looks like I may have new memories. This time of a series of movies based off a set of books. Just before Harry and Ron arrived in the car I had a memory surface it was mixed with words and images."

"Interesting," Willow said. "Could you tell …"

"I think the first movie or book was titled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," Dawn said. "The images and words came from the second book."

"So," Willow said. "We will be not only protecting Harry. But using the movie or book knowledge to give him a better life, like you did with us in Sunnydale."

"Looks like," Dawn said.

The next day Dawn looked at the breakfast laid out on the staff table and frowned. "Porridge and fish?" she said with a shake of her head. "A least we have milk, toast, bacon and eggs."

Willow smiled at Dawn as a rushing sound could be heard overhead and a hundred or so owls streamed in, circling the hall and dropping letters and packages. One owl dropped a letter in front of Dawn and Willow.

Dawn opened and smiled. "It's from Buffy. She says she misses us as usual. Joyce just turned one and she and Faith through her a big birthday bash with Xander, Giles and a few of the Slayers in attendance. She said our gift for Joyce was much appreciated."

"What did you send her?" Willow asked remembering that Dawn had said she had picked something out for them.

"Actually not so much what I sent as what I did. I portaled into Joyce's room when Buffy and Faith had taken Joyce out to the park. I painted the room, pink. On the door is stenciled Joyce's Room."

"That's nice, baby," Willow said as she leaned over and kissed Dawn.

"Hmm Buffy wants you to write and tell her about your family, especially, Harry," Dawn said.

"I'll do that tonight," Willow said.

Dawn glanced over at Harry and Ron when she heard what sounded like someone howling. She couldn't make out the words but she was sure that from everything she had seen so far in Hogwarts that it was Ron's mother's voice. She wished she hadn't wrote that note to the Weasley's.

The morning went fine and passed relatively quickly for Dawn and Willow. After lunch they had some time before their second year class. They walked outside and passed Hermione who was reading Voyages with Vampires.

"You are aware that book is fiction," Dawn said when she noticed the title.

"Fiction?" Hermione asked as she looked up. "This is a required textbook for my history of magic class."

"If Professor Lockhart had actually come up against a vampire, he would dead," Dawn said.

"And how would you know?" Hermione asked.

"Because I'm a Slayer," Dawn said as Hermione's eyes went wide. She and Willow walked on and passed Harry as a boy asked to take Harry's picture.

"A picture?" Harry repeated blankly as Willow and Dawn sat on a bench.

"So I can prove I've met you," said they boy eagerly, edging further forward. "I know all about you. Everyone's told me. About how you survived when You-Know-Who tried to kill you and how he disappeared and everything and how you've still got a lightning scar on your forehead" (his eyes raked Harry's hairline) "and a boy in my dormitory said if I develop the film in the right potion, the pictures'll move." He drew a great shuddering breath of excitement and said, "It's amazing here, isn't it? I never knew all the odd stuff I could do was magic till I got the letter from Hogwarts. My dad's a milkman, he couldn't believe it either. So I'm taking loads of pictures to send home to him. And it'd be really good if I had one of you"—he looked imploringly at Harry—"maybe your friend could take it and I could stand next to you? And then, could you sign it?"

"Signed photos? You're giving out signed photos, Potter?"

Loud and scathing, another boy's, Dawn and Willow thought might be a miniature Spike, voice echoed around the courtyard. He had stopped right behind the first, flanked by two large boys.

"Everyone line up!" Malfoy roared to the crowd. "Harry Potter's giving out signed photos!"

"Mr. …" Willow said as she walked over to Harry and the three boys. She looked to Harry.

"Malfoy," Harry told her.

Willow nodded. "Mr. Malfoy. I highly suggest you go about your business and leave Mr. Potter and his friends to theirs. Or I will see you in detention."

Malfoy glared at Willow. "Yes, Professor," he said as he and the other two boys stalked off.

"Thanks," Harry said.

"No, problem, Harry," Willow said as she rejoined Dawn.

Just then a bell rang somewhere in the school and everyone headed inside. Willow and Dawn were the last to enter their classroom.

"Afternoon everyone," Dawn said. "I'm Professor Rosenberg-Summers and this is my wife Professor Rosenberg. That said we are not going to stand on formality in our classroom. You can call me Dawn and Willow, well Willow."

"You are probably wondering who we are," Willow said. "How we got this position. We are what you call muggle-born. As a result we grew up on a Hellmouth learning Wiccan magic."

Several of the students in the room gasped when they heard that Willow and Dawn had grown up on a Hellmouth.

"We have been fighting the forces of darkness for several years," Dawn said. "I am also a Slayer. No I am not the Slayer, just a Slayer. A few years ago, Willow and I cast a spell that turned all Potentials into Slayers. Now we want to start with a quiz. See what you remember from last year and then we'll proceed with a small demonstration."

Willow and Dawn then handed out the quizzes and a half an hour later they were completed. They proceeded to go over all of them and smiled.

"Good," Willow said. "It seems you all are on the same page. And now for the demonstration. We acquired a pair of Cornish pixies." She lifted a covered cage from out behind the desk. "They are not to be trifled with. Two of them are capable of lifting one of you easily. They can fly which makes them hard to capture."

"Which leads into the demonstration," Dawn said as she removed the cover from the cage.

One of the students couldn't control himself. He let out a snort of laughter.

"Now, repeat after me," Willow said. "Immobulus"

"Immobulus," the class echoed.

"Good," Willow said. "You will need that spell to capture them. Now for the demonstration." She opened the cage.

The pixies shot out of the cage like rockets. They seized Neville by the ears …

"Immobulus," shouted Dawn and the two pixies froze in midair. "Sorry Mr."

"Longbottom," Neville said.

"Mr. Longbottom," Dawn said as she grabbed the pixies and stuffed them back into the cage. "As you can see just the pair of them was prepared to lift Mr. Longbottom up in the air. They have strength proportionate to myself."

Hermione raised her hand.

"Yes, Ms."

"Granger," Hermione said. "How did you cast the spell without a wand?"

"Some spells can be cast wandlessly if you have the power to do so," Willow said. "Now take WIngardium Leviosa, it can't be cast wandlessly as it requires the wand moves as well. Immobulus doesn't require wand movements. Just the conviction and the power behind the spell."

"You all couldn't do the spell wandless because you don't have the knowledge that we have," Dawn said. "That said we could teach you of course to do Wiccan spells and wand spells wandless. Anyone who wishes to do so can meet us on Saturday and will receive extra credit."