"So this is Harvard," Hermione thought aloud as they walked past a series of matching red brick buildings behind wrought-iron fences.
"What's Harvard?" Ginny asked.
"It's a university – Muggles attend them to further their studies after secondary school," Hermione explained. "Oxford and Cambridge are two of the most famous ones back home, and Harvard is one of the most well-known in America – it's a highly respected school." They followed Aunt Diane's directions away from the main square and soon found their destination – Arrow Street. The street was quite small and there wasn't much there besides a church and a few nondescript buildings, but there were two teenage girls standing about halfway down the street who looked like they were waiting for someone.
"Maria?" Hermione asked, using the guide's name their letter had provided.
"Hi! You must be Hermione. I'm Maria, and this is my sister, Julie." The girl who spoke was tall and sporty, her wavy brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. Julie was even taller than Maria, with curly blonde hair and freckles across her nose. They both had the same deep blue eyes and very similar facial features – even without Maria's introduction, Hermione could tell they were related.
"Yes, I'm Hermione, and this is Ginny, and Tonks. Are you from Salem?"
"We are," Maria said. "We've been asked to bring you to the school and show you around." She pushed open the door behind her and led them down a short flight of stairs, at the bottom of which was a T station. A train sat waiting on the tracks, its body silver with a sleek stripe of purple and black running along the side.
"Welcome to the Salem line," Maria said. "Not the most original name, but the T already has silver and purple lines, and black seemed…I dunno…"
"Too depressing?" Julie joked, her curls bouncing as she cocked her head towards her sister.
"Yup. Hop on, and we'll talk on the way."
Maria and Julie had loads to say on the short trip to Salem, both about their school and themselves. Unlike the Hogwarts Express, the Salem line was available to shuttle students back and forth every weekend, as the trip took less than half an hour, and it also ran on specified weeknights as well. Learning to integrate with Muggle society was extremely important at Salem – all students took a mandatory course for the entirety of their education that familiarized them with both Muggle and Wizarding culture, and more selective seminars, counseling sessions, and events were available for those who wished to pursue options such as university or a Muggle career. The train's frequent schedule allowed the students to easily interact with everything on offer in Boston and Cambridge.
"I wish we had something like that," Ginny said enviously. "I had trouble just getting my train tickets, and you should have seen me at the airport!"
"You don't have anything like that?" Julie asked, her eyes wide.
"We have a Muggle studies course, open to third-years and up, but it's optional, and it doesn't cover anything useful," Hermione explained. "I took it for just the one year and immediately dropped it afterwards. We also don't have anything at all covering Wizarding culture – those of us who've grown up in Muggle homes are thrown headfirst into the deep end and basically just expected to figure it out as we go."
"But what do people from Wizarding backgrounds do when they go to Muggle places?" Maria wondered.
"They don't, really," Ginny said. "I'm from one – pureblood, my family's been magic for generations – but while some people take pride in that, I find it tough. I know loads about the Wizarding world, but throw me into Muggle London, and I'm completely helpless."
"I can't even imagine that," Maria said. "The two cultures are so intertwined here."
They used the remainder of the journey to learn more about each other. Maria and Julie were half-bloods – their Wizarding side descended from a victim of the witch trials – and they had two older sisters who'd already graduated from Salem. Quidditch wasn't as popular in America as it was in Britain, and so the girls didn't really follow it, but they both loved another broom game called Quodpot, though only Julie actually played. Julie was going into fourth year and loved history – Hermione knew she'd be their go-to person when they got to talking about Ravenclaw – while Maria was starting her sixth year and much more of a numbers girl. They were still chatting away when the train slowed and finally stopped.
"We're here!" Julie exclaimed as she hopped down onto the platform. "Let's go!"
"Jules, chill," Maria said with a laugh. "Give them a chance to catch their breath before you go charging off like that!"
"We're at Salem," Julie replied, an 'Isn't it obvious?' look prevalent on her face. Maria rolled her eyes.
"Little Miss Impatient," she muttered. She gestured for Hermione, Ginny, and Tonks to follow her, and the group of five headed up the stairs into the sunlight. Before them was a wide gate enclosing a series of brick buildings just like those they'd seen at Harvard. Green lawns were bisected by strategic footpaths, there was a stadium off to the right, and they could both see and hear the ocean – the school was right on the water. Small groups of students were scattered throughout the grounds, reading, chatting, and tossing Frisbees, and a few of them waved to Maria and Julie as they passed.
"So, here it is!" Maria said, making a sweeping motion towards the school. "The Salem Witches' Institute."
"I thought this was an all-girls' school?" Ginny asked, looking questioningly towards a group of boys who were tossing a ball around.
"Oh no, we most definitely have boys," Julie said with a wink. Maria rolled her eyes again.
"My boy-crazy sister, ladies and gentlemen," she said with a snort. "Yes, Salem is a co-ed school. Both men and women were persecuted during the trials, all of them accused of being 'witches', and the founder of our school decided to honor that in the name – but we do call the guys who go here 'wizards', and always have. And as you can probably tell, lots of us stay here for at least part of the summer, especially if we live close to campus – there's a lot going on here."
"What are you two doing?" Hermione asked, interested.
"I'm doing independent research involving Arithmancy and Muggle math, and they always like it when the proctors can stay over the summer," Maria said. "I think that's similar to when you were talking about your prefects earlier – I've been one since last year. Julie's got Quodpot for at least part of the summer, and of course she wouldn't pass up a chance to get into the archives."
"I think I might just be your girl," Julie cut in. "I saw the letter you sent our Head of School – you wanna chat about Rowena Ravenclaw? Let's go." She squeezed between Hermione and Ginny and looped her arms through theirs, calling an enthusiastic farewell to her sister as she marched them towards what they guessed was an academic building.
"Is Maria not coming too?" Hermione asked as she struggled to keep up with Julie's long strides.
"Nah," Julie replied dismissively. "She only came with me coz students aren't supposed to take the train by themselves – she's off to deal with her theorems and all that jazz." She snorted, suggesting exactly what she thought of that idea, and herded them into the building, which they were surprised to see was lit with electricity and looked very modern.
"Cultural integration," Julie chirped as if reading their thoughts. "This way, please!" They followed her through the building and up to the school's library – though brightly lit and comfortably furnished, it didn't quite have the same atmosphere as the one at Hogwarts – and finally into the archives room. A bunch of books and papers were sprawled out over the nearest desk, and Julie motioned for them to take a seat while she organized the mess.
"I've been spending most of my time in here when I'm not playing Quodpot," she explained. Hermione frowned.
"These are your archives? Your records aren't protected?"
"Oh, no," Julie said quickly. "They are. The older stuff is kept in vaults downstairs, and we have climate-controlled rooms and all that – remember though, Salem isn't nearly as old as Hogwarts, so we don't have quite as much that's in danger of falling apart. This room contains the school's history, and anyone's welcome to use it – you have to be trained to use anything stored downstairs, but everything here is fair game. It gets locked and warded at night, obviously, but our founder wanted everyone here to be able to understand and appreciate where we'd come from."
"So what can you tell us about Ravenclaw?" Tonks asked.
"About Ravenclaw herself? Not a lot," Julie replied. "Our founder's line goes back to her, but that's a gap of almost seven hundred years. Her motto's painted above the main library doors, I know that."
"I didn't know Ravenclaw had a motto," Ginny commented.
"Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure," Julie recited. "Supposedly it's inscribed on her diadem, but that's been lost for centuries." At their confused looks, she said, "You really don't know much about Ravenclaw at all, do you?"
"None of us are in Ravenclaw House," Hermione explained. "And even if we were, our history books don't say much about her."
"Oh. Well, they say she owned a diadem – a tiara – that gave the wearer enhanced wisdom, and that saying was on it. It's mostly just a rumor, though, coz nobody's ever actually seen the thing. And you're right, there isn't much written about her." Julie's eyes sparkled mischievously. "Salem does own something else that belonged to her though."
"They do?" Hermione asked. "What is it?"
"It's a ring – why everybody insists it was hers, though, I have no idea."
"Why is that?" Ginny asked, hoping she didn't sound too eager.
"Because it's…oh, you wouldn't believe me if I told you," Julie said. "Just come downstairs and I'll show you." At the back of the room was another door leading to a flight of stairs, at the base of which they found the entrance to the archives. Julie waved her wand to remove the locks and wards, and they filed in. Climate-controlled glass cases filled with scrolls and other artifacts lined the walls, and there was a display stand in the middle of the room, on which sat a small jewelry box. With another wave of her wand, Julie freed the box of its enchantments and picked up the ring, holding it flat on her palm.
"The pride of Salem, my friends," she said dramatically, "is…a piece of junk." Hermione, however, could barely contain her excitement, and Ginny and Tonks sensed it too. This was what they'd come for – this was their ring. Even in the dim lighting, they could see its blue and bronze coloring, and it had the same plastic look Hermione recognized from Hufflepuff's ring back at Hogwarts.
"I mean, it's obviously more than it looks – there are tons of stories about people trying to break it in a whole bunch of ways, and all of their attempts failed even though it honestly looks and feels like cheap plastic – but nobody's been able to figure out what's so special about it, other than that it was supposedly hers. Still pretty cool though." Julie shrugged and put the ring back in its stand. "That's all I can tell you, and it's almost four o'clock – any of you want to learn how to play Quodpot?"
Hermione, Ginny, and Tonks did indeed go to Julie's Quodpot practice. While it was highly entertaining, however, they couldn't help but think about the ring. Though Julie was in the dark as to its real power, it was clear she – and the rest of her school – viewed it as both an important historical artifact and an important piece of their school's history. It wasn't like their claims were fraudulent, either, as they'd already proven that Salem's founder was a descendent of Ravenclaw and therefore had a legitimate connection to the ring. How were they going to convince them to give it up?
After an enjoyable dinner in Salem's dining hall, Julie and Maria showed them to a guest suite in one of the dormitories. Hermione protested that they had other accommodations and could easily return to the school the following day, but the American girls wouldn't hear it – and inwardly, Hermione was glad to accept, as it would make their exploration of the school easier. After a hushed discussion with Ginny and Tonks, Hermione came to the conclusion that they were going to have to steal Ravenclaw's ring – she wasn't overly fond of the idea, but they were running out of time and didn't have any other viable options.
The next morning after breakfast, Hermione went straight to the library for a book on the school and its history. It didn't take her long to find what she was looking for, and she sat down in an oversized armchair to read, making particular note of the little details that could be useful – for example, there were anti-Apparition wards on the property, but just like at Hogwarts, they did not extend beyond the front gate. By lunchtime, Hermione had a workable list, and she headed for the dining hall in high spirits, chatting with Ginny and Tonks about their mornings. Ginny, who had been fascinated by the Quodpot practice, had joined in a pick-up game, and Tonks, who had quite liked Arithmancy in school even though she found it difficult, had spent the morning chatting with Maria about her independent study work. They left the Americans to their own devices for the afternoon and lounged in the sun out on the lawn, another group of Frisbee players nearby, and fine-tuned their plans for that night. Their flight home was only a few days away, and they wanted to attempt their heist as soon as possible in case they ran into any unforeseen complications and had to come up with an alternative.
That night, Hermione and Ginny sat in their guest room, waiting for the signal from Tonks. The first stage of their plan involved Tonks using her Metamorphmagus abilities to transform into Julie, as no one would question the blonde girl's presence in the archives. Ginny and Hermione would then meet up with Tonks, hidden from view by the invisibility cloak that Hermione had sneaked from Harry's trunk before they'd left, and the three of them would go after the ring from there. For that to work, however, they had to make sure the real Julie was out of the way. After what seemed like hours, the Order coin in Hermione's hand heated up, and the two girls left the suite.
They met Tonks outside the library building. Her transformation was excellent – she'd even Transfigured her clothes to match Julie's. The only reason they knew it was actually Tonks was the silver bracelet.
"Tonks!" Ginny whispered. "Right behind you!"
"Wotcher," Tonks replied with a grin that looked eerily like Julie's. They hurried inside and were walking up the ramp to the library's main doors when Maria came around the corner.
"Jules?" she asked, looking confused. "I thought you were getting food?"
"Forgot something," Tonks said quickly, brushing off Maria's question the way the real Julie did.
"Ok then…" Maria looked like she didn't quite believe her, but she continued on her way.
"I thought you said the real Julie was out of the way!" Hermione hissed once they were safely in the archives.
"I couldn't Stun her, she wasn't alone!" Tonks replied. "But she said hi to me and asked if I wanted to grab dinner, so I'm guessing that's where she is."
"Then we've got maybe ten minutes, if we're lucky," Ginny said. "We don't know where Maria's going, but there's a chance she could run into her sister, and if she does, they'll immediately know something's up."
"Well the wards on the archives door can't be that difficult, if Julie can open them," Hermione reasoned. "She's only what, fourteen? And she basically said anyone can have access as long as they get permission. It's the wards on the actual ring case I'm worried about." Without further delay, they hurried down the stairs to the archives entrance.
Hermione was right – she and Tonks dismantled the wards on the door very quickly, although they had to move fast in case they'd unknowingly triggered anything that alerted the school to the fact that someone was down there. Julie hadn't mentioned anything like that, but of course she wouldn't have told them everything…the wards on the display stand, however, were much more confusing. Hermione could take down only two of the seven wards, and Tonks admitted that she recognized two others but didn't know how to unlock them.
"There's got to be another way to do this!" Hermione said despairingly. "We have to get this ring!"
"We'll figure something out," Tonks said reassuringly, but she looked doubtful.
Ginny, however, was studying the display stand closely. The stand sat on a plain wooden box some three feet high and one foot square, and it was before this box that Ginny now knelt. She fidgeted with it for a moment, doing something neither Hermione nor Tonks could see, before they heard a click and the front panel of the box slid open.
"Just as I thought," Ginny said, the smirk evident in her voice. "Salem embraces Muggle technology a lot more than Hogwarts does, so they've got a deactivator – accessible only by Muggle means." She held up the thing she'd been fussing with – it was a hairpin.
"The perks of living with Fred and George," she said smugly. "Now, let's turn this thing off." She looked around inside the box and flipped a switch.
"Interesting," Tonks commented, nodding approvingly. "I might have to suggest that at our next Auror department meeting." For the switch had indeed deactivated all of the wards on the ring, and Hermione scooped it up and stowed it on her necklace without trouble.
"Let's get out of here," she said.
Getting out, however, would prove easier said than done – when they turned around, they saw Julie and Maria standing at the top of the stairs, Julie looking furious.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" she demanded. "Expelliarmus!"
"Protego!" Hermione threw up her shield just in time, and their wands stayed put.
"Stupefy!"
"Expelliarmus!"
The girls immediately began shooting spells back and forth, Hermione and her friends fighting to get to the staircase. Julie's concern for the archives worked in their favor, and they managed to return to the main level with little resistance. Once they were out of the archives, however, all bets were off, and spells flew in all directions as Hermione, Ginny, and Tonks raced from the library, the invisibility cloak streaming from Ginny's hand like a kite.
"Impedimenta!" Hermione shouted. The spell clipped Maria's shoulder and she stumbled, but she soon regained her footing and chased after her sister.
"They've got the ring!" Julie shouted. "Somebody stop them!" But there was no one to hear her cry, the grounds deserted in the after-dinner hours save for the quintet now racing across the lawn.
"Julie, which one are you?" a confused Maria called. Tonks, who did indeed still look like Julie, laughed, tossing a wink over her shoulder as her hair morphed back into brown spikes.
"Best in my class at Concealment and Disguise, and I didn't even need to study!" she crowed.
Halfway to the gate, Ginny turned and hit Maria with her Bat-Bogey hex, and the American girl fell to her knees, unable to fight off Ginny's signature curse. Julie was still fighting, though, and dodged every spell they threw at her. Not only that, but she was fast, and she gained on them with every long stride.
"Just a little further," Hermione panted, clutching the stitch in her side. Finally, they reached the gate, throwing themselves through as fast as they could and yanking it shut behind them.
"Grab my hand!" Tonks shouted. Ginny and Hermione wasted no time in obeying, and Tonks turned on the spot, the three girls disappearing instantly.
"Dammit!" Julie cried. "No, no, no!" She shook the gate in frustration, but it was no use – they'd taken the ring. She stomped her way back to her sister.
"Finite Incantatem," she growled, the spell ceasing instantly. Maria took one look up at her furious sister before inexplicably bursting into laughter.
"What is so funny?" Julie snapped. "They've just stolen the most important object from our entire archives!"
"Oh, shut up, Jules," Maria replied, her laughter subsiding. "We've got plenty of other stuff that actually belonged to our founder, as opposed to something that was passed down and just so happens to have a connection. That ring belongs at Hogwarts and you know it, it was only a matter of time before somebody came to get it. Besides" – and here she snickered again – "a bobby pin, a Metamorphmagus, and an invisibility cloak? Come on – even you have to admit they've got style."
A/N: This was a fun chapter to write - hope you all enjoyed it! Fun fact of the day - today marks the 1-year anniversary of this series. Can't believe it! Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me this far. We'll get Harry's other chapter tomorrow, then Draco's probably around Friday, & then we'll be all caught up with what I wrote over vacation. Huzzah!
Another fun fact - Arrow St. is a real place in Cambridge. There's a fantastic frozen yogurt place there - unfortunately it wasn't built until almost 10 years after this setting, so I couldn't include it...but if you ever find yourself in that area, be sure to stop in!
Bugs & Squirt - no, it's not just a passing resemblance. ;) Love you both.
Thank you, as always, for the follows/faves/reviews, & for reading!
JKR owns all things Potter, I just play. Please R&R, & enjoy! :)