Chapter 2:
Albus Dumbeldore slowly walked towards Serena, hoping not to scare her further. Gently, he sat on the floor next to her.
"Will you please trust me?" he asked her quietly. Serena looked up into his blue eyes. Something in them seemed to make her nod. Her head started to spin even more. Slowly, she fell down, down, down into complete darkness.
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"Why did you bring her here?" Serena heard a woman say.
"Where else would I take her?" she heard Dumbeldore say. Serena slowly opened her eyes. She saw Dumbeldore and a woman standing by the door. "And besides, Hogwarts is the safest place for her right now." Dumbeldore replied. "Please Minerva, go call Poppy."
"Fine," Minerva said and walked out.
Dumbeldore turned around to see Serena sitting up on her bed. His frustrated face suddenly turned into a smile. Serena couldn't help but smile back.
"You've finally woken up," Dumbeldore said, his eyes twinkling. "I was just going to check on you."
"How long have I been sleeping?"
Dumbeldore quickly glanced at his watch. "I would say that you haven't slept enough, but roughly about four hours…"
"Oh…I'm sorry. I think I'll go now," Serena said, pushing the bed covers off her.
"Go?? I just brought you to the place that you're supposed to be…"
Serena looked around her. "A hospital??" she asked, uncertain.
Dumbeldore chuckled.
"This is only a part of Hogwarts," he explained, "a very small part."
"Hogwarts?? Isn't that the school you mentioned last night??" she winced at the thought of last night.
Dumbeldore seemed not to notice that as he immediately continued. "That's the one."
"So, what am I doing here? You said it was a place for witches and wizards. I very much doubt that I will fit into such a place…"
Dumbeldore seemed again very amused by this because, once again, Serena found him chuckling. When he saw the concern in Serena's eyes, however, he immediately stopped to explain. "My dear, have you ever made something happen in the spur of the moment, perhaps because of excitement or anger?"
Serena tried to think back, but was instantly brought back to the memories of her parents. She sighed. She knew this would take some time to get used to, but yes, there were times that she had apparently made things happen, without knowing how she did it. She remembered that when those moments did occur, she found a look of excitement in the eyes of her parents. She, however, was never the one to question.
Serena looked back up at Dumbeldore and nodded silently. "Were my parents als--?"
"Oh, yes. They were two very wonderful wizards…and I'm sure you'll turn out as great as them," Dumbeldore assured her.
Serena did not find the right words to say, but somehow Dumbeldore made her feel much better than she expected herself to feel.
Suddenly, a stern looking woman hustled through the door. She wore long green robes and was carrying a battered, old hat. The hat was the ones that she had seen children wear on Halloween when they dressed as witches and wizards.
Funny, Serena thought. We seem to know what they dress like, but we never seemed to believe their existence.
"Serena, this is Professor McGonagall. She will be your Transfiguration professor and she is also Head of Gryffindor House," Dumbeldore said.
"Hello, Ms. Martin," McGonagall said, giving her a tight smile.
Serena smiled in response.
"Well, now that the two of you know each other, its time to get you sorted," Dumbeldore announced.
"Ummm…sorted?" Serena asked, puzzled.
McGonagall seemed to respond automatically. "You will be sorted into a certain house. While you're here, your house will be like your family. Good deeds done will earn you points, while any rule breaking will cost you points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points wins the House Cup."
"Okay," Serena replied, slowly. "So, which house am I in?"
With that, McGonagall walked towards her and put the old hat on her head.
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McGonagall led Serena to the Gryffindor Common Room. She froze when she saw that all the paintings around her could move and talk. She was even more taken aback when she realized that they moved from one frame to another.
McGonagall stopped in front of a large portrait of the Fat Lady, which swung open when the Lady saw the Professor approaching.
"Welcome to Gryffindor House…"
McGonagall led her up a small flight of stairs and stopped in front of a door, opening it. Inside, there were four beds. Only one bed was full of neatly folded clothes.
"Whose bed is that?" Serena asked, pointing to the occupied bed.
"Yours," McGonagall replied.
A/N: Don't forget to review!!! All authors become more inspired when they have feedback. So, c'mon!! Inspire me!! LOL, thanks…
