Constants and Variables

by Azmodai

While avoiding his cousin and the daily dose of Harry Hunting, the Boy-Who-Lived stumbles across an impossible woman in an impossible situation. How will she affect his future? how will she shape the things to come?

4. Chapter 4: Sorting out the Train Ride

Chapter 4: Sorting out the Train Ride.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and Bioshock Infinite, they both belong to their respective owners.

"What do you want to talk about my dear?" He asked placing the letter in the draw of his desk. It was nothing of concern to Narcissa and it was more of a gesture to show that he had her attention.

"I met someone quite interesting while Draco and I were getting his robes for the coming year." She said as she walked over, her hand resting on the back of the chair that sat on the opposite side of the desk to Lucius.

"And what person could possibly catch your eye?" Lucius asked, Narcissa's expression shifted from one of a smirk to a smile. It was strange to see her smile like that, only in the guaranteed privacy that she would seemingly drop the cold exterior, the Black family persona that she showed to the rest of the world.

"Two people actually." She corrected after a moment's thought, sitting down on the chair, "one of which you were expecting to be turning up at some point." She continued elusively and he smirked, there was only one person of importance that would be appearing around this time.

"The Potter boy." Lucius guessed and Narcissa nodded.

"He did look worse for wears when I saw him, so pale and malnourished. His parents must be rolling in their graves with how he must have been treated." Narcissa said, part of her felt a slight pang of guilt about it. She was Black, Harry had Black blood in his veins through his father's side of the family. But the Potters had chosen their side, to side with the lesser blood, Muggleborns and Half-blood's that sought to destroy customs that had long held together the Wizarding World.

"How did he and Draco interact?"

"He seemed quite unsure of himself, non-committal answers as Draco started talking, he really does need to learn a bit more tact Lucius, you cannot expect to make allies and connections in the school if you insult everything outside of your world view, regardless of your opinion on it. It's an almost... Gryffindor attitude." She teased lightly and Lucius resisted the urge to roll his eyes, it would be unbecoming for a Head of Family to roll his eyes like a child.

"I will have words about his... tact, later. Did you manage to stop him before he completely alienated the boy?" Lucius asked. It was a gambit that they were trying. Draco was to make friends with the Boy Who Lived, not only would it possibly allow him to manipulate control of the child through the legal system. But if Draco offended the boy and shot any chance of friendship in the foot then that plan would go in the bin faster than the House Elves could clean the house.

"I was about to, but I was beaten, in an interesting way by the other person I mentioned." Narcissa spoke, lifting a hand and checking her nails. She frowned, her nail was marked, she dismissed it, lowering her hand again.

"A teacher was escorting him?" Lucius asked in curiosity. He had expected something like that, most probably one who held the same ideals that Dumbledore held, the 'light' side with complete hatred of the dark side. "The games keeper I don't doubt was the one." He sneered, Hagrid, the Keeper of Keys and Grounds for Hogwarts was someone he'd like to see removed from Hogwarts permanently. The man was a freak of nature in the eyes of Lucius.

"If there was, they didn't turn up until after I left, not the person I met was a new employee of the school." She said and Lucius frowned before nodding his head.

"I'd been informed about it. Dumbledore hiring an assistant to help with subjects, grade the children's paper work to allow the professors to work on their higher years." Lucius commented. It wasn't a bad idea, he wasn't against it because it would help his son in the future, the cost was negligible for the school and one assistant for the year wasn't that much of a problem. Depending on where their alignment rested. "What did they have to say?" He asked curiously. A new face presented new variables to any plan he had regarding the school to get Dumbledore out in the future.

"Draco was insulting Hufflepuff house and she pointed out to him the strengths of the house. Connections with others that would help in pursuing careers, a network of friends that would cover and stand up for you in times of troubles." She explained and Lucius made a small gesture for her to go on. "It was at this point that I stepped in, reminding Draco of his manners and speaking to her, curious about her ideas on the Houses in general," Narcissa paused as a cup of tea appeared on the table in front of her. The Elves were sometimes a godsend with the way they were able to nearly instantly predict what was going to happen. But with the way Lucius treated them sometimes, they had a choice, be quick or be punished.

They chose to be quick.

She took a sip of the tea, thinking on how to phrase the next part as Lucius waited calmly, "She was more than happy to talk about her views, she went through all four houses and gave both their upsides and downsides. She didn't seem to show bias towards any in particular." She explained, placing the tea cup back onto the saucer with a slight clink of china as it connected. "But it seems she's not just there to be an assistant to the Professors. She's an Orphan who was missed by the system. An American Orphan that was missed." She added and Lucius sneered.

"An American? We're letting colonials into the school now? I knew I should have fought against the idea." He said with disgust lacing his voice but Narcissa waved him off.

"You jump without knowing husband. Yes, it is a shame that the School has sunk so low as to allow Colonials, uneducated Colonials in to the school to learn magic long after they should have finished but there was something about her that caught my attention." Narcissa said thoughtfully, "We know her name now, Elizabeth DeWitt. We know she's from America and we can find out more about her this way but there was something else. I used Legilimency on her." She finished and Lucius's eyes widened in surprise.

"You did what!?" He asked in shock. The use of Legilimency on another person was a serious crime, if she had been caught doing it then there could have been trouble for them. Yes, money could have fixed it but not without spending quite a lot.

"It was a risk, a gentle probe that didn't touch any barriers. Her natural ones were easy to bypass but there was another one... a strange one that wasn't designed to keep people out." She commented, confused by what she had witnessed. "It was a barrier designed to keep something in, without focusing on it more I couldn't tell but from what I could see, I think she may be a legitimate seer." Narcissa reasoned. "And not a fraud like Trelawney, but one that can see all that happens, that could happen, that could have happened." Narcissa explained as she thought about the things that she had seen.

"A real seer?" Lucius asked, his hands clasping together, leaning forward slightly on the desk as he looked intently at Narcissa. "Are you certain?"

"It's the only logical conclusion that I can draw. through the barrier I could see different scenarios play out quickly, they overlapped and changed quickly, but they were of Madam Malkin's store and they repeatedly changed with what happened. In one I saw Draco there with you at his side. Another, the Potter boy with the groundskeeper, on and on it changed, little differences, big differences. There were so many that I had to pull back for fear of being over whelmed by what I saw, the fact that she has them locked away makes me believe that she could be aware of it." Narcissa finished and Lucius leant forwards resting his chin on his thumbs as he thought about the possibilities of this.

"She could be dangerous." He said cautiously.

"She could be a valuable asset." She responded, her smile returning to a smirk. "Besides, I have already open the door for her to associate with her." Narcissa added calmly, almost as an afterthought. "New to the world, not understanding any of the culture, not understanding any of the magic that she is about to witness and acting as an Assistant to the school. It's a lot to work through, I have offered my assistance is she has any questions regarding anything that she is unsure about. She's at an age older than the students, a lot younger than the teachers, a sympathetic ear that is willing to listen will be a valuable thing for her." Narcissa explained and the smile was returning to Lucius's face.

"I think I may have an idea on how to go with this." Lucius said thoughts of what was to come already playing out in his head.

Two weeks had passed since her initial sorting and she had barely stopped working during that time. Elizabeth sat in the garden, a small stack of books on the table as she read through the first year school books. she had drifted away from the main spell casting spells and found herself more drawn to the Potions text. Something about the subtle science was fascinating, the interactions of certain ingredients if added in certain orders or added after certain actions had been taken. It was a puzzle that was drawing all her attention.

Harry had also been focused on the books, though he found himself leaning more towards defensive spells and magic, the subject had grabbed his attention and when Elizabeth had asked him about it he had just responded that he didn't want to see anyone else suffer where he could avoid it. She felt torn about that, on one aspect it was good that he was willing to fight injustice but at the same time, it wasn't right that an Eleven-year-old was already thinking like that.

A week into the stay and Elizabeth had asked him if he had seen anymore rifts, to see whether or not the power that he had absorbed had faded away but it was still there. He had seen several tears. It had manifested the same way that her powers had, when she had used the power before it had allowed her to access anything or anywhere, but then before she had been rescued from the Tower, her powers had been drained by a device that she was still unsure how it worked. It siphoned her powers off and forced her to rely more on the tears that formed in the world. Parts of reality that were thinner, the barrier between one dimension and the next at a point where something could be pulled through or something could be seen through it. Now though, thanks to the device being destroyed she had the full powers back, the ability to go where she wanted, when she wanted. There was so many things available to her but for now she was content.

The challenge had been laid in front of her, to help the School, to help Harry. She wanted to see how she could do with it.

"Enjoying the sun while it lasts?" Bathsheda asked, she had returned from a trip up to Hogsmeade, the village that sat next to Hogwarts, it was the only village left in the United Kingdom that had an entire Wizard and Witch population from what she had been told and it was one of the few places that they could truly be themselves. She had skipped out on the trip when invited though, more focused on getting her notes sorted, next to her books sat a notepad that had numerous scribbles and notes written in it along with more than a few doodles she had idly drawn when she had started reading.

"While it lasts?" She asked.

"England isn't exactly known for its good weather. Give it a few days and we'll probably end up having enough rain to make a swimming pool out here." Bathsheda joked, sitting in another chair at the table.

"It's nice, to sit and relax, to not have anything to worry about." She explained, sliding a book mark into the book and closing it. "I've been meaning to ask you, how is it that you communicate with other magical people?" She asked leaning back slightly into the chair and looking up into the sky, watching as several birds flew overhead.

"We have a couple of ways, if you and the person are connected to the Floo Network then you can use that to have a conversation. Looks weird though, on your end you've got your head in the fireplace and on the other end you've got the person talking to a fireplace." She started and Elizabeth giggled slightly at the mental image. "Next for the slightly more important messages that don't really need a reply you can send a Patronus... but not many people do that for the simple fact a Patronus is so hard to cast in the first place. To send messages with it is generally done only by the Aurors or powerful wizards." She continued, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "But the most common way is the one you're probably wanting to know about, we use owls, they're some of the smartest creatures and really useful. Unless a person really doesn't want to be found, the owls will be able to find them."

"That would explain the Owls that you got myself and Harry." Elizabeth realised before pulling a page free from the notepad that she had been writing on, grateful for the perforations that were in it so it didn't look all torn and ragged. "Thank you for that." She said, resting the paper on the notepad and quickly picking up her pen.

"Don't tell me you've already found someone special to write to... I only left you alone for a little bit in Diagon Alley and you haven't been anywhere else." Bathsheda teased and Elizabeth rolled her eyes, cheeks going slightly pink at the implication.

"No, no... nothing like that. I just need to ask someone a question is all." She said, slightly dismissively but Bathsheda nodded her head.

"This would be Mrs Malfoy wouldn't it?" Bathsheda asked, already knowing the answer having spoken to Harry in the clothes shop after that event. Personally she didn't care much for the Malfoy's but that was because they didn't care too much for what she was. A Muggle Born who had successfully made it in the Wizarding World to become a teacher at the most respected School at such a young age in comparison to the others, the only other Professor that could match her was Professor Snape but even he had a few more years on her. "Is it an answer I can give you at all?"

"This one, I'm afraid not, it's not so much an answer to a question but an opinion on a question." Elizabeth responded vaguely as she continued writing the letter.

"Just remember, the Malfoy family is dark Elizabeth, they've got a reputation and many fear them for what they're willing to do. Narcissa is also a Black, one of the oldest and darkest Wizarding Families to ever live in this country and have performed actions that would put the Malfoy's to shame." Bathsheda continued cautiously. She wasn't trying to make Elizabeth stop all contact considering Narcissa had given the information, she just wanted to make sure Elizabeth was aware of what the association with the group would bring.

"I understand the risk. Don't worry this is something that I need to ask them. To understand about how they think." Elizabeth replied and glanced at Harry. "Everyone has plans for Harry over there. I've seen it, I can't see what those plans are but I know that he is the centre point for all of this. Everything changes with how he acts." She said quietly, making sure he didn't hear her from the place he was sitting further down in the garden, resting against a tree as he flicked through the book. "I've said I'd look out for him and the only way I'm going to be able to do anything like that is if I know the people involved. You say they're the most influential people on the 'dark' side of the spectrum then they're someone I'm going to want to pay attention to." Elizabeth countered. "Besides, the question I have to ask is one that should make her think. Maybe it'll make her question things that others wouldn't, if she's as smart as you seem to imply." Elizabeth finished, returning her attention to the letter, a look of deep thought coming to her face as she worked to put the letter she had in her head into writing.

Harry turned a page in his book, glancing at the duo that sat at the table, his thoughts on the last couple of weeks. To him they had probably been the best that he had ever had. He wasn't being shouted at for nothing, he wasn't being forced to do all the chores in the house and he was able to pretty much relax and just get on with whatever he wanted to do... which at the moment largely left reading of his new books. Everything was pulling him to focus on things. He tried to get into Transfiguration to follow what his father had done but a lot of it went a bit over his head. he understood that a lot of it required mental accuracy and the ability to picture the transformation in his mind as he cast the spell but at the same time some of the spells just seemed weird. Why would he need to turn a beetle into a button? Charms was another subject that he looked into, intrigued by what his mother had learnt but the book was so vague in its context, it covered so many aspects, just loosely touching on them with a handful of spells and a list of other books to get to follow up on anything specific. It's what eventually led to him focusing on the Defence against the Dark Arts book. It was detailed, spells along with what they were designed to be used against, the majority being basic magical creatures, ones that were a little bit of an annoyance but not much more. Still it was focused and he was fascinated by it all. He had spoken to Elizabeth for a bit about the potions books and he couldn't help but smile slightly as he remembered her talking passionately about it. She was extremely looking forward to the class.

He glanced away as Elizabeth looked up at him, turning his head back to the book. It would be rude to be caught staring and he didn't want to offend her. She had done a lot for him.

He hoped he was in the same house when he gets sorted. She was a lot of fun to talk to. Absently, he turned another page of his book, not long now until he went to Hogwarts and begun to see what the Wizarding World truly had in store for him.

Narcissa was in her private room, brushing her hair as she looked at herself in the mirror. The plans that Lucius had come up with where interesting to say the least. He did have intelligence in that head of his. She lowered the brush and placed it on the side, reaching and picking up the letter that Elizabeth had sent her two days ago. It was something to think about, an attitude that was rarely taken by anyone nowadays. A simple question to understand instead of going off of pre conceived notions that so many people in the Wizarding World tried to follow.

Dear Mrs Malfoy,
Thank you again for agreeing to answer any questions that I have in regards to the Wizarding World and its culture. I've had a couple of people tell me things about it already but at the same time I feel that it isn't enough to just listen to one side of the situation. I have had opinions on this from a Witch of Non Magical parentage and I was curious as to what the opinion of someone who is Pureblood would be in regards to this.

What is causing the divide between the blood? In your opinion what is causing it?

Narcissa paused as she lowered the letter again thinking about this. What was the cause of the divide? Was it truly that their legacy, their bloodline made them better. It was a question that had already been at the back of her mind for all these years. Every year the shift in the grades seemed to be taking a step more towards Muggleborns and Half-blood's taking the top positions. The Purebloods were still highly ranked but that they were being beaten was the focus point. Research was being done but largely hindered. Some believed it was because of the inbreeding, that they were literally breeding the magic out of their children by the close blood ties that the families had formed over the years, others believed it was because they were so steeped in tradition, that habits repeated were signs of stagnation and a lack of flexibility or change which allowed the Muggleborns to get ahead because they did not have that resting on them, they were essentially a clean slate, she lifted the letter back up and continued to read.

If there is a problem, which I am not saying there isn't either way, what is the potential cure for the problem? Is it due to a lack of understanding of tradition? a bull headed approach to their entrance into the world? Or is it the other way around? Is it due to stubbornness from the Pureblood families that prevent them from adapting to new ideas that come into the world?

I do not write this to try and push my ideas onto you but to try and find out what can be done to mend a wound that even through my limited exposure to the world can tell there is something wrong.

Again, thank you for the talk we had in Madam Malkin's the other day, it was nice to meet new people, I look forward to writing to you in the future and I look forward to speaking with your son when he starts at Hogwarts.

Sincerely
Elizabeth DeWitt.

Narcissa put the letter back down, returning to look at herself in the mirror. It was a letter that would take time to respond to, she had to think carefully on how she phrased things and how she would try and show that the Purebloods weren't as evil as many tried to make them out to be.

Smiling, she picked up her brush again, returning to the task at hand with a small smile. It was an interesting game that she was playing, idly she wondered where it would lead.

September first soon rolled around and the three were at Kings Cross Station, gear loaded up onto trolleys, Harry, Elizabeth and Bathsheda walking through the busy train station people were giving them odd looks every now and again, but that was to be predicted when they were moving through with two owl cages and two large old fashioned trunks instead of ordinary suitcases or bags. Still, the people of London had seen weirder things through the years. they arrived at an area between Platforms nine and ten, the two that would be travelling by train were looking around confused as to where the platform nine and three quarters would be located.

After all, you didn't expect a magical location to be in plain sight did you? "It's hidden behind the barrier just there." Bathsheda said pointing towards a brick barrier. "Just take a walk and pass straight through, if you're feeling a bit nervous, take it at a bit of a run, but not enough to draw attention. Don't want the muggles to see." She explained, lowering her hand and looking around to see if anyone was paying attention. "Okay Harry, you go through first." She ordered and he moved forwards, hesitantly at first but quickly picked up the pace, disappearing through the wall without a trace that he had ever been there before. "You follow through and I'll meet you at Hogwarts, I've got a few things I need to go sort out so I won't be going through with you."

"Thanks for everything, we'll see you at Hogwarts." Elizabeth thanked before moving towards the barrier. Her breath caught in her throat as she got closer, her brain screaming at her to stop because she'd crash and injure herself. But she pushed herself forwards, closing her eyes just as she would hit the barrier. and found no resistance to it whatsoever. Cautiously she opened her eyes, half expecting to wake up in bed as if it had been a dream but instead she found herself standing on a platform, a bright red steam train waiting on the tracks for the students who were running around eagerly, older ones looking for friends they hadn't seen during the summer holidays, younger ones, having eagerly waited to get their letter giddy with anticipation as they said goodbye to their parents. Looking around she saw Harry at one of the cargo carriages, that would hold their trunks and animal containers. She pushed her trolley over and moved to give him a hand lifting the heavy box on to the train before moving on to hers. "Ready for this Harry?" She asked and he nodded. She noticed many people looking in her direction, older students who were confused as to who she was, adults who had never seen her before and were trying to work out who she was as well. It just went to show there weren't many new faces outside of the young children and the people of the Wizarding World knew pretty much everyone else. All one big happy family. Harry had also noticed the stares that she was getting and gestured for her to leave the trolley.

"I'll get rid of that," He said the two trolleys sliding together. "See if you can find anywhere for us to sit." He stated the suggestion, less of a question but she smiled none the less.

"Keeping an eye on me already Mr Potter?" She teased and he smiled at her.

"You looked after me, I think I should do the same." He responded just as seriously and then walked off with the trolleys.

She sighed, shaking her head slightly as she climbed onto the train. They had spoken a lot over the last few weeks, covering both the topics the school had and the fact that he could see the rifts. Just like she had done with Bathsheda, she had made Harry promise not to start to toying with the rifts and to keep them under wraps around other people. She explained that if she was right then the power should have started fading away. But they hadn't they had gotten stronger, he was able to find the tears more easily than before, thankfully he hadn't opened any but there was still a chance. Still he had promised and she trusted him to keep his word. Walking down the corridor of the train, she narrowly avoided being run over by several of the younger years as they dashed down the train to look for her friends, glancing in the rooms as she walked she saw many of them were already filling up quickly but thankfully one nearer to the back was empty. She slid the door open, walking in and closing it behind her, sitting on the seat and flicking open the book she had with her, having switched back to focusing on Transfiguration for the last little preparation time. She had already been given her timetable and was going to be in the first Transfiguration Class of the year, a mixed class of Gryffindor and Ravenclaw so she wanted to make sure she knew what she was going to be helping them with.

The door slid open, she glanced up and smiled at Harry as he entered in. "I'm surprised you managed to find an empty space, there's so many people here." Harry commented dropping into the seat opposite her.

"Anyone notice who you were?" She asked curiously. They knew everyone was going to pay him attention due to the fact that he was the Boy-Who-Lived but he was taking the chance to keep a low profile while it lasted.

Shaking his head, Harry smiled slightly. "I'm safe for now. There were a pair of red heads that saw me but I don't think they clicked as to who I was." Harry joked and Elizabeth nodded her head, turning her attention back to the book. "Haven't you memorised that by now?" He asked her. She had shown him the schedule and he knew this was the first class she was going to be with but she had pretty much had her nose buried in the book for the past few days. He turned his attention to the window looking out at the crowd of people watching them say good bye to their parents, watching them board the train, watching the people who had arrived late rushing desperately to get their kids on the train in time.

"I may have memorised what I need to know but you can never be too sure on something. I don't want to make too much of a fool of myself." She replied with a laugh, a piercing whistle echoing in the station. "Looks like we'll be off in a second. Still excited?" She asked already knowing the answer and the grin was a blatant indication as to whether or not he was looking forward to it.

The whistle was sounded again and they shifted, the train starting its slow movement to get out of the station and begin its journey. Harry watched through the window, the station rolling out of view behind them before leaning back into his seat, finally on his way to Hogwarts. finally allowed to practice Magic. Elizabeth had done a few spells but Harry hadn't, Bathsheda had been quite strict on that, the Underage Magic laws probably wouldn't have picked it up because he had yet to start Hogwarts but she was pretty strict on the ruling.

The door slid open again. Both looked up, Elizabeth from her book and Harry pulled from his own thoughts as a red headed boy stood in the doorway, freckled and with a smudge of dirt on his nose. He looked nervous to be talking as he looked between the two. "Do you mind if I sit here? Everywhere else is full." He asked, explaining why to the two. Elizabeth looked to Harry and shrugged. He smiled and nodded to the boy.

"Sure, have a seat." Harry said and the boy moved in, closing the door behind him as he sat down next to Harry.

"Thank you." He muttered nervously before speaking up, finding some courage to talk, remembering his manners. "I'm Ron by the way, Ron Weasley." He introduced and another silent communication happened between the two for a split second.

"I'm Elizabeth, Elizabeth DeWitt." She introduced before gesturing to Harry. "He is Harry Potter." she said, knowing full well that the comment would draw a reaction from the kid who gasped at the revelation.

"Are you really?" He asked in suspicion. "Do you really have the... the... the scar?" He asked, stuttering nervously glancing at Harry as both he and Elizabeth rolled their eyes. The boy had no tact. Harry agreed at this point to show it though and brushed his fringe away to show the lightning bolt scar. "Wow..." He muttered and Harry lowered his fringe and went back to looking out the window a slight uneasiness settling in the room. Ron, realising that he had done something to unsettle the tone tried to find a topic to shift to looking at Elizabeth, seeing her reading a first year book. "You're reading a first year book?" He asked bluntly, "you don't look like a first year."

"You're not really one for subtlety in your questions are you?" She teased lightly and he blushed in embarrassment. "I'm a teaching assistant, I'm going to be helping the staff with the early year's classes." She explained, lifting the book with one hand cupping the spine and closing the book, a thud echoing in the compartment. Ron flinched at the noise, not expecting to have run into a teacher this early in the year, before he had even reached the castle. "Out of curiosity Ron, do you have any family?" She asked, shifting the topic. Harry had mentioned red headed children and she was curious if they were also Weasleys.

"I have five brothers and one sister." He responded, "I'm the youngest of the brothers." He muttered glumly and Elizabeth frowned slightly at that. So many siblings that were older than him, he'd want to try and find some way to stand out in comparison to them.

"Any of them still in the school?" She questioned and Ron nodded.

"Three of them, Fred, George and Percy. My sister is still too young to come." He explained and started to talk about his older brothers that had left Hogwarts already.

A few hours passed, a few people sticking their heads in for a second looking for others, many of them lingering their attention on either Elizabeth or Harry a bit longer than either of them would have liked

"Anything off the trolley dears?" The voice of the elderly Trolley Witch spoke as she looked into the room.

"I'm okay... my mum made me some sandwiches." Ron said glumly, withdrawing a set of wrapped up sandwiches from his pocket, looking slightly worse for wear with how they were transported.

Harry saw the look on Ron's face and could read the situation well. It was the same feeling he had when he was at the Dursley's, the knowledge that other people could get things that he couldn't. He turned his attention to the witch and looking at the stuff, not recognising everything before nodding his head. "We'll take some of everything." He said, fishing in his pocket for some coins.

With the trolley now a lot lighter, they sat with the sweets sat on the seat next to Elizabeth, the trio picking through them out of curiosity, the sandwiches lying forgotten on the bench next to Ron. "Chocolate Frog?" Harry asked looking at the shaped box, he could feel it rattling slightly as something moved inside. "It's not a real frog is it?" He asked with a sideways glance to Ron.

"No, it's just chocolate animated to move around." He explained. "Though I'm still looking for Agrippa." He added as an afterthought.

"You're looking for what?" Harry asked in confusion.

"Agrippa, each of the Chocolate Frog packs have a card in them of a Famous Witch or Wizard." Ron explained as Harry opened the pack. The frog trying to jump away, jumping in the direction of Elizabeth. But Harry was quicker, his hand snatching out and gripping the frog. Ron blinked in surprise at the reaction speed. "Woah... with moves that quick, maybe you should try for the house team." Ron suggested before realising that he probably didn't know what Ron was talking about. "Quidditch I mean." Ron added.

"First years can't," Harry said in slight disappointment, what he had read about it sounded really interesting, he couldn't wait to see a game in person though, the photos in the book had barely shown anything. He also had the other major problem of not owning a broom to play the game. Though he could probably solve that problem with the funds he had in his vault. For now, he was willing to wait.

Once again the door slid open, the trio looked at the figure standing there, a girl with bushy brown hair stuck her head into the room. "Has anybody here seen a toad?" She asked, "a boy named Neville has lost one."

"I'm afraid there's been no sign of a toad here." Elizabeth commented.

"Though I wouldn't blame him for trying to lose it. I'd try to as well if I had a toad." Ron muttered and everyone looked at him in surprise. "Though I can't talk..." He muttered again his cheeks turning pink with the attention that he was receiving as he fished a rat out of his pocket. "I have Scabbers here." He explained the fat, old rat looking like it had seen better days, patches of fur missing, a claw missing on one paw. Looking at the rat Elizabeth felt a sharp stabbing pain in the forefront of her mind causing her to wince in pain, a headache starting to form. she gasped slightly, rubbing her forehead and the group were distracted by the rat turning back to look at her.

"Are you okay?"

I'm okay, just a bit of a headache. Maybe I've been reading a bit too much." She said jokingly with a glance at Harry.

"I'm Hermione Granger and you are?" The girl in the doorway asked looking at the others.

"That's Ron Weasley, I'm Elizabeth DeWitt and that's Harry Potter." Elizabeth said as she fished out a bottle of water, twisting the lid off of it. She didn't mean to hijack the introductions but the way the girl had spoken to introduce herself just rubbed her the wrong way. It was so abrupt and rude.

"Harry Potter!?" She said in amazement, "I've read all about you."

"I'm in books?" Harry asked in shock.

"Several books, they say all about how you defeated the Dark Lord." She responded quickly.

"Oh that's going to be interesting. How do they say he defeated the Dark Lord?" Elizabeth asked before Harry or Ron could say anything. Hermione went to speak back, caught off guard by the answer before frowning slightly.

"They... didn't clearly say anything. They were in fact incredibly vague about it." She said in annoyance, the idea of the book not knowing almost tantamount to blasphemy with her.

"Because no one actually knows." Harry spoke up quietly. "There is only one person alive who was there that night." Harry said pointedly looking at the bushy haired girl who had the decency to blush and look apologetic.

"I better get on... with helping Neville find his toad." She said hesitantly and quickly left, the door sliding shut as she left.

"Mental that one..." Ron spoke with a roll of his eyes. "I hope I'm not sorted into her house." He added quickly as he turned to look at the other two for confirmation in his thoughts.

"That seems a bit unfair, she's just new to the world, Muggleborn if I had to guess." Elizabeth said with a frown, she had done the exact same thing that Elizabeth had done, dug into books to find information about the world but whereas Elizabeth had experience with the world itself. As much as running gun fights and chaos in a city in the air and a city under the water constituted experience with the world, she still had interaction with people. The girl was still young enough to have everything dictated to her by books. "She'll grow and adapt and make an impact as time passes. Just like you will I'm sure." Elizabeth said with a smile, Ron blushing at the comment.

Once more the door slid open and in walked someone that two of them knew, if not that well from a previous meeting.

"Word along the carriage is that Harry Potter is in this room." The boy started with an air of superiority but quickly shifted it into the background as he saw Elizabeth and Harry sitting in the compartment. "Ah, where are my manners." He spoke, stepping into the compartment and gently lifting Elizabeth's hand, placing a chaste kiss on her fingers. "It's a pleasure to see you again Miss DeWitt." Draco said politely before turning to look at Harry. "And I don't believe I introduced myself to you properly the last time we met. I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy." He greeted, holding out his hand to Harry. Ron snorted, dismissive of the name of the family, Harry couldn't help but chuckle slightly as his mind flashed back to the night before where he, Elizabeth and Bathsheda had watched a James Bond film. Draco's introduction just reminded him so much of the character. Draco though, didn't take kindly to Ron's attitude. "I don't need to ask your name, Red hair and hand me down robes, you must be a Weasley." Draco snapped, lowering his hand, wheeling on the red head. Harry stood up instantly, angling himself to stop any potential fight from breaking out.

"Look Draco, I'm sorry for laughing, it wasn't at your name. I was watching a film with a character that introduced himself the exact same way." Harry said, and held out his hand. There was a brief look of confusion on Draco's face that vanished after a moment, realising it was probably a muggle thing and he didn't really care about it either way.

Draco smirked at Ron before looking back at Harry. "You'll find some Wizarding families are better than others, I can show you Harry." He said and went to shake his hand but Harry moved back, lowering his hand as he frowned.

"See, why did you have to say that?" Harry asked in frustration. "We could have kept the peace. We could have just moved on and pretended that little sniping before didn't happen." Harry stated focusing on Draco, the Blond looking slightly taken aback by Harry's comment and wanted to speak up but Elizabeth interrupted to try and diffuse the situation before they all started falling out.

"What makes your family better?" Elizabeth asked looking at Draco, curious as to what his answer would be.

"The Malfoy family is an Old pureblood family, we have been skilled at magic for generations and have had influence for years and we've amassed numerous resources, both political and financial." Draco spoke smugly and Elizabeth shook her head.

"You parrot lines that have been spoken without understand what they mean. Your reputation is damaged through the actions in the last war." She spoke calmly, holding up a hand as Draco went to protest, silencing him. "Your family was found innocent but the implication is there. Be your own person, Draco." She said with a warm smile. Harry held his hand out again.

"Third times the charm, Harry Potter." He introduced politely and Draco after a moments pause, glancing between the two of them, ignoring Ron.

"Draco Malfoy." He replied coolly and took the offered hand shaking it. "You should get changed into your robes soon. We'll be arriving at the school soon." He said calmly before turning around and walking back out of the room. Harry let out a sigh and flopped back into his seat, glancing at Ron who was frowning, almost shifting into a glare.

"How could you shake hands with Malfoy?" He asked angrily and Harry shrugged.

"I've heard of the reputation of his family through the person I stayed with the last few weeks before coming here. I know their family is what people would call dark but I know that I can't just declare someone my enemy when they haven't done anything to me." Harry explained calmly.

"But he's a Malfoy! Their family worked for You-Know-Who!" Ron protested.

"But did Draco?" Harry asked and Ron stopped his comments.

"Well... No... But you know he's been raised with the Dark Arts." Ron protested.

"Do I? I've only met him once before at Madam Malkin's and while a bit full of himself he didn't seem too bad. I'll let him prove himself through his actions." Harry finished as he stood up to move out of the room so that Elizabeth could get changed into her robes. "But he was right about one thing, we're nearing the School so we need to get changed." He said walking out, Ron following after him.

Half an hour passed and the Train pulled into Hogsmeade station, students moved off their bags left behind as told by the prefects. Elizabeth, Harry and Ron were following the masses until they heard a voice shouting nearby "First years! First Years over here." A large man was shouting. Not just large, gigantic was a more fitting description, he towered above everyone, from first to seventh year student as he shouted over the crowd a group of children quickly forming up around him along with Elizabeth. The man looked at her in confusion before he realised who it was. "Ah, Miss DeWitt." He called out happily. "Dumbledore asked for me to pass on to you that you can choose either way to get to the School, though if you don't mind me saying, there's nothing like the view from the lake." Hagrid said happily and Elizabeth smiled, his happiness was easily contagious and great at putting the younger students at ease.

"With praise like that, how can I resist?" She asked politely as He started to lead them down towards the boats docked on the lake.

"We haven't been introduced, I'm Hagrid, pleasure to meet you." He introduced as students started to climb into the boat. "No more than four to a boat." He called out. Harry climbed into a boat, Draco sitting down behind him with Ron sitting on his other side, Elizabeth taking the last seat, sitting next to Draco who smiled at her. "Forward!" Hagrid called out and the boats started moving, the large man having a boat all to himself as they started moving along the water. "You'll get your first sight of Hogwarts in a few moments." He called out, the boats coming around an outcropping that blocked the school from view. "Mind your heads." He called out as they went under several trees with low hanging branches. the students ducked, Hagrid having to duck further as they came around the corner and there before them was the School.

Students gasped in amazement at the sight. Elizabeth realised that Bathsheda had been right, this really was the best way to see the huge castle, in the darkness, the windows glowing from God only knows how many candles were illuminating it, casting its glow over the lake. "No other view like it." Hagrid said more to Elizabeth than anyone else as the boats started to. "Alright, everyone out and we'll make our way up to the school." Hagrid called.

Harry and Ron were the first out of the boat, Draco was next and surprising those around him he turned around, offering his hand to Elizabeth. She smiled at the gesture, accepting the hand for what it was meant and stepped out of the boat. "Thank you." She said quietly as Hagrid started to lead them up the stairs into a smallish room.

"The First Years, Professors McGonagall." Hagrid said as the students saw a woman standing in dark green robes.

"Thank you Hagrid, would you take Elizabeth into the Great Hall?" She asked with a slight nod of greeting to Elizabeth. Hagrid gestured for her to follow and the two walked into the Great Hall.

If the outside of Hogwarts was stunning in its attractiveness, the Great Hall was breath taking, lit as it was with candles hovering on in the air, held in invisible chandeliers, the clear night sky shining through the enchanted roof distracted her for a moment before she remembered that the Hall was filled with students and more than half of them were staring at her, she smiled at them before returning her attention to follow Hagrid up to the staff table. She had been given the option to sit at either the staff table or with the Ravenclaw's but at this time she had decided to sit up with the Staff with someone she knew taking the seat that would place her next to Professor Flitwick and Babbling. As she sat down she smiled to the two Professors, Bathsheda leaning over to talk quietly to her.

"So how was your first train trip to Hogwarts?"

"Interesting, had a bit of a run in with a few of the younger students but they sorted themselves out quickly enough. Nothing to worry about. But you were right about that view from the boats." She said happily as the first years started to walk into the room, being led down the middle of the students. She saw Harry with Hermione next to him, whispering something but she couldn't make out what. The group soon reached the top of the House tables and McGonagall and the students looked at her as she placed the hat down on to the stool.

"Now you're about to see something that happens only once a year." Bathsheda quickly whispered as the tear in the hat opened up and started to sing.

"Oh you may not think I'm pretty..." It sang loudly, everyone giving it their undivided attention. Elizabeth was amazed at just how impressive the hat was. It could sing, it was designed to sort people into their respective houses. It was an impressive piece of magic and she was curious to see it in action from a spectator point of view.

"So put me on! Don't be afraid! And don't get in a flap! You're in safe hands (though I have none) For I'm a Thinking Cap!" The Hat finished, bending over as it did, taking a bow as it finished the song. For a moment there was silence, the students giving the hat a second to see if he had properly finished the song before they broke out into cheers. a minute passed and the cheering continued before McGonagall stopped their applause and withdrew a list.

"When I call your name, you will come up, take a seat and I will place the Sorting Hat upon your head and you will be sorted into your house." McGonagall spoke unrolling the list of first year students. "Hannah Abbot." She called out, the first of many to be called, she was quickly sorted into Hufflepuff.

The list went on, Draco Malfoy was sorted into Slytherin almost immediately, as if the hat already knew quite well what Draco was going to be. But with his certainty when they first met, Harry knew that Draco was going to end up there. The girl he met on the train, Hermione was called up, she sat down, the hat going over her head and there was a longer pause. Harry could see her lips moving as she sat on the stool, as if she was arguing with it as to which house to go in. After several more moments it called out "GRYFFINDOR" and she took the hat off, happily moving down to the Gryffindor table.

There were a few more called and Harry knew that it was about to be his turn. "Harry Potter." She called and slowly he moved forwards, he could already hear the whispering around him from the students. 'Did she say Potter.' 'Harry Potter?' 'The Boy-Who-Lived is here!?' There were so many whispers but he ignored them, walking up and sitting on the stool, the hat coming down onto his head.

"Well, well, I wondered when I would get to sort you Mr Potter." The Hat whispered inside his mind. "Such an interesting situation, the Boy-Who-Lived, but that title matters not here and now. You are brave boy, very brave, Gryffindor would serve you well... But there's something else about you, something that only Slytherin could bring to greatness.' It continued, digging deeper into his mind, Harry saw the students at their tables sitting forward, eagerly waiting to see who could bag the Boy-Who-Lived for their house. "The attention doesn't interest you?" The hat asked and Harry shook his head slightly.

'I want to be known for what I can do, not for what some title that others have given me have decided on.' Harry responded mentally and the hat hummed a little bit as it toyed with the information.

"Are you sure? Slytherin could teach you to use that name, to make it work to your advantage. Gryffindor would ignore it but you'd still be a focus, you have a family to live up to."

'If those are my only two options then I'll choose neither. I'll take a third option.' Harry retorted, the name meant nothing to him, a title that had been placed upon him years ago, he didn't want other people to think that he was going to be something that he wasn't because of a name or a legacy. He wanted to choose his own fate.

"A third option, that would take some work to achieve..." The Hat trailed off again thoughtfully. "But there's something else, someone you want to stay close to, admirable loyalty you have there Mr Potter." The Hat commented proudly. "You would have done Godric proud if he was still around but with loyalty like that there is only one house I can put you in..." The hat went silent again before it shifted on his head. "RAVENCLAW!" It shouted and the table of the eagle exploded in cheers. The Hat was removed from his head and as the rest of the people clapped in appreciation of the sorting he walked over to the Ravenclaw table, a space opened up between two of the students and he sat down, glancing up at the Head Table as the next name was called out, locking eyes with Elizabeth who just smiled and raised her glass to him before focusing back on the students that were left to be sorted.

Blaize Zabini was the last student to be sorted and he was placed into Slytherin. McGonagall picked up the stool and the Sorting Hat and left through the door at the side of the room as Dumbledore stood up. "Though I do have announcements to make, I know many of you are hungry and so they can wait until after the feast." He called out and clapped his hands, food appearing on the table magically. Dumbledore sat down and the students started to eat.

At the Ravenclaw table, the few students around Harry were trying to talk to him, not talking over each other but several tried to start conversations with him at the same time. "One at a time, one at a time." He said with a slight laugh, confidence he didn't think he would have felt before rising to the surface as the others looked between themselves to decide who would start.

One of them spoke up. "I'm Terry Boot, nice to meet you Harry." He said, the boy sitting next to him, short brown hair, a smile on his face as he shook hands with Harry. The rest took turns, introducing themselves to each other and to Harry as several of them hadn't met on the train or before Hogwarts. He smiled, it was nice enough at the moment, everyone more distracted by food than they were by the fact they had Harry Potter at the table.

Up at the Head Table, Flitwick was speaking to Elizabeth about Harry being sorted into Ravenclaw. "I am surprised." He said placing his goblet back on the table. "I did expect him to go to Gryffindor. I can tell you that McGonagall will be a bit upset, his father was one of her favourite students." Flitwick explained, Elizabeth smiling as Bathsheda commented before she could.

"In the month I've known Harry, I definitely saw him heading into Ravenclaw, he's been reading those books like crazy practically every day since he got them." She explained, thinking back to the times she had been there with both Elizabeth and Harry, they always seemed to have their noses in books. "About the only thing that I could have seen as a second major possibility would have been Hufflepuff because of how much work he was putting into everything, that and his want to make friends, his desire to help those in need and the amount of kindness he has shown already." She finished, returning to her food.

They continued their discussion during the feast, Elizabeth chiming in with bits and pieces when she was asked but otherwise just staying quiet and listening to the Atmosphere of the Hall, there were so many people just happily talking about their time during the Holidays, discussing the summer homework they had and moving on to talk about the upcoming year. After a little while, the food disappeared and was replaced with Dessert, Elizabeth was shocked at how many different varieties there were. She hadn't really had many back when she was in Columbia... not that the variety was as big either but that was beside the point. She kept an eye on the rest and just picked at bits and pieces sampling several of them.

But in no time at all it was gone again, the tables now clear of all food and Dumbledore stood up to talk. "Now I know you're all tired and would like to sleep but before you go, I do have a few announcements for you. Firstly, for our newest students and a reminder to our older students." He paused, looking at the Gryffindor table, two red heads in particular with a pointed look, though it was lessened slightly by the smile on his face. "The Forbidden Forest, is by definition Forbidden to all students without prior permission." He paused again, looking around before nodding his head slightly in the direction of the Caretaker. "I have also been asked to remind you, that the list of banned items has been pinned to the noticeboard outside Mr Filch's office. He would like me to inform you that the list has increased to include several more Zonko's items." Dumbledore stopped, looking towards Elizabeth. "We have a new staff member starting with us as you probably have noticed. Miss Elizabeth DeWitt will be with us for the foreseeable future, she will be assisting with classes throughout the year while working on her own studies." Dumbledore explained and the crowd of students politely applauded her, she smiled, blushing heavily and waved to them. "She will be staying in the Ravenclaw Head Girls dorm during her stay for now but will be more than happy to help anyone who has a problem, just like I hope you will also give her the courtesy of help as she adjusts to this new environment." He stopped again, looking around at the students, his face turning serious. "And the final announcement, but by no means least, The Third Floor Corridor on the Right Hand side is strictly Out of Bounds to all of those who do not wish to die a very painful death." He commented and there were a couple of students that chuckled but quickly went silent when there was no sign of joking in Dumbledore's attitude. "Thank you, Classes start tomorrow so now you will all want to get some sleep. Prefects please lead the first years to their dormitories. Good Night." He finished and the students started reacting, moving towards the doorway, calls by the prefects to their relevant houses to organise the First Years echoed above the general chatter.

"Elizabeth, you may want to head with them." Flitwick spoke and she nodded her head. It wouldn't do to get lost on the very first night that she was here properly. "Good Night and see you tomorrow for breakfast." He finished as they went their separate ways.

Tomorrow started a new life for her. One she was eager to see.

TBC

Chapter 4, another one that I enjoyed writing. I've always felt that Harry needed to speak up a bit more when dealing with people, I may have done a bit too much too soon with him but at the same time he doesn't have to fear the actions of the Dursley's if he stands up to people like Draco or Ron if they act out of order.

First year will still be hitting many of the points that appear in the book, the troll, the flying lesson chaos, the first Quidditch Match the midnight duel and the Detention in the Forbidden Forest, there wont be much deviation on the overall arc for first year but each scene will be different enough and have different situations play out. I hope that when we get to them you guys will like what I've done with them.

I've almost finished chapter 13, I've fallen a bit behind on my writing this week, a mixture of work and dealing with some personal issues but I'm still working on it, currently its at 5000 words and growing. I should be back on track with the chapters soon.