"Come on, sit down," Rose said as she made a place for Sam at the table. It was long, maybe room for a hundred kids, and as Sam looked around, she noticed that they were of different ages, maybe the youngest around 11 and the oldest around 18. They had resumed eating and talking, but every once in a while they would steal a glance her way.

"Where are you from?" a dark haired boy across the table asked as he held a chicken leg in one hand.

"Bournemouth," Sam said as she looked at the serving dishes in front of her. That food did look good. They seemed to have everything, but she wished that there were mashed potatoes to go with the chicken and peas that she was heaping onto her plate.

"Me too!" the boy exclaimed. "Well, almost. I'm in Highcliffe. My name is Colin."

"Oh, that's nice," Sam said as she was momentarily distracted by a bowl of mashed potatoes that appeared next to her goblet. "I'm in Boscombe…" she trailed off, sure that the mashed potatoes weren't there just a second ago.

Colin noticed her confusion and smiled. "Hey, it's magic. Whatever you need, it will appear before you at the table. There are house-elves that anticipate your needs. Relax, things are a lot different here than back home."

"Elves?" Sam asked as she tentatively took a spoonful onto her plate. The food was good, no matter where it came from and she didn't realize how hungry she was.

"There is too much to really explain," Rose said. "Colin and I can give you a tour after dinner. I hope you will stay the weekend, I have so many questions for you."

"What kind of questions?" Sam asked between bites of delicious, buttery mashed potatoes, just like her mom used to make.

"I want to know about Spotify," Rose said with a laugh. "I heard some muggle-born fifth years talking about it."

Sam put her fork down and took a sip of the liquid in her goblet. If she didn't know better, she would have sworn that it tasted a little like a pumpkin. "You mean you and your family are all wizards and you don't know about things like Spotify?"

"Look around you," Colin interjected. "This is really different than your world, right? We are magic folks, and stay separated from the Muggle world. That is how we've been able to preserve our culture. We live among the Muggles, but they don't know we're there." He paused as he scooped trifle onto his now-clean plate. "Have you ever seen anyone dressed unusually in Bournemouth? Like in robes and pointy hats, or loud colored suits?"

"No, not in Bournemouth," Sam said.

"That's what I'm talking about. There are loads of wizarding families near Bournemouth, muggles just don't know it. There is a charm that makes you undetectable to muggles unless you interact with them, and even then, they usually don't see anything unusual, you just don't look for it," Colin said.

"You mean to tell me that your world is intermingled with mine, and I just don't know?" Sam asked.

"Oi, Murphy," Rose called to the girl down the table, "Tell Sam where you are from."

"Swindon," the blonde answered.

"Erica," Rose called out to a close-cut red head next to Colin, "where are you from?"

"Slough," Erica answered. "Dreadful town."

"Oooh, like The Office," Sam said, trying to say something nice.

Erica stared back without recognition.

"It is a show," Sam said. "Was on BBC Two? Big hit?"

"They don't have any idea," the boy next to Sam said. He was taller and a little older than the others around her. "Television is an alien concept. They don't have electricity here and certainly not internet," he said. Although he was dressed in the same uniform as everyone else, he was…different.

"No electricity?" Sam asked.

"Imagine a very backwards society that has this magical super power, and they don't really need anything from regular people. Oh, and they have amazing medical care and live for a long time. They make fun of us, but keep it to themselves," he said. "My name is Matthew," he said, extending his hand.

Sam shook it, and for a moment was speechless, realizing how close and separate these two worlds were. "How did you get here?" she asked after she found her voice.

"I got a letter. An owl brought it to our kitchen window. My parents didn't know what to make of it, and the next day these wizards from the Ministry of Magic stopped by and explained everything. Once you get over how crazy it all sounds, it makes sense. I've been a student here for five years. It is fab," Matthew said.

Sam looked at him, the long table full of food and the Hall. The ceiling had floating candles and flaming torches illuminated the sides. Everything looked so old, but…working. The students were happy and chatting with each other and even her father was smiling as he talked to that woman next to him. Sam hadn't seen him smile in a year, so at least something good was coming out of this trip. As she looked down at the table, a small dish of sour gummy worms appeared. They were the one candy that she and her mom used to love, and right now it was just what she needed.