"This is a telephone box." I say glumly. I'm tired from all the walking.

"I told you, it's the entrance. It says so here in the notes. Don't you ever listen? Get in."

The two of us cram into the small red telephone box.

"I don't like this!" I squeak, pushed up against the telephone. I am not a fan of cramped spaces.

"Move over a little." Luca squirms against me and struggles to get a hold of the telephone and dial 62442, just as the instructions say.

At the prompting of the operator, we issue our visitors passes and descend into the atrium.

I try to act cool, but I think my eyes look bigger than usual as we start moving. I step out into the atrium in a hurry.

We stand here for a moment, just looking around.

"I'm nervous." Luca says.

"Nothing to be nervous about." I say confidently, flipping my long hair over my shoulder, but my eyes still feel unnaturally huge. Luca is telling himself it's just my own cosmetic touch for comfort, I'm sure.

"I'm a little worried about you." Luca admits rather sheepishly.

"Why?" I ask innocently.

"Well, you seem to be taking this in stride. Maybe a little too much-?"

I shrug. "What use would worrying about all this do?"

We slowly start walking across the atrium floor.

Some ministry officials check our visitors passes and direct us to the floor where we'll meet The Minister of Magic herself.

I don't enjoy the elevator ride. We're packed in tight and it reminds me of the ride in the telephone box.

By the time we get to the minister's office I think I actually look a bit worried. We stand there, staring at the door.

"She was best friends with Harry Potter and helped him fight against Lord Voldemort." I say.

"Don't call him Lord. What's your point?"

"What if she hates me? I was all for Muggle annihilation in my past life."

"Good point." Luca says, reaching for the door.

"Gee, thanks for easing my conscience."

The minister's office is magical, just as the rest of the ministry. Papers are flying, pens are scribbling. The minister is swamped with work, but despite her advanced age, looks sharper than ever.

"Boys," She says as we step wearily in. "Thank you for coming today." She gives us a very friendly smile.

"Thank you for inviting us here." Luca says politely. I roll my eyes. "We're anxious to know what exactly the ministry wants with us."

The minister lets go of the pen she's scribbling with – it keeps writing on its own – and puts her hands under her chin.

"I want you to go to school. Make friends. Get comfortable living at Hogwarts." She says simply.

We stare. I feel like we've done a lot of that today.

"If it's all the same, is that all you wanted to tell us?" Luca asks, confused. "I thought there was a prophecy – "

"The prophecy needn't concern you now. I wanted to meet you and welcome you back to the UK, but you shouldn't have to worry about these things at such a young age." She turns towards me, "I know of your family, how they fled the country, supposedly trying to escape the trouble and stigma that the name Riddle came with. I hope you know that I have no grudge towards you personally. You are not the mistakes of your grandmother or great grandfather. I hope that you will stay if you can and do your best in your studies. But, people will expect you to prove yourself to them, which can be tough. I remember when Harry – well, that's not important right now. I just think things will be a little tougher for you here than in the America's. This is where You-Know-Who and his daughter Delphie Riddle resided and did the most damage. The scars are still fresh in the minds of the people who live here."

I nod stiffly. "I understand."

I hadn't expected her to be this kind. She didn't really know anything about me, other than my blackened family name and what I had done in my past life, neither good things, yet she was able to see good in me immediately. I feel touched, something I rarely feel.

"Madam, is there anything at all you can tell us concerning the prophecy?" Luca throws in desperately.

"What I can tell you is that the prophecy won't be fulfilled if I tell you about it, and The Ministry and MACUSA alike will do whatever it takes to stop that from happening. Until then, go to Hogwarts, study hard, have fun, and if you're anything like me and my friends, make trouble, just not too much."