"Have you got your phone?"

"Yes."

"Have you got pyjamas, and clothes for tomorrow?"

"I'm all packed Damon."

"There's no harm in checking."

Maya grinned at her godfathers defensiveness, reminded of how he was on her first day of school. She knew it was just his way of showing how much he cared about her.

"Nope, there isn't. But I have everything I need and if I am missing anything I can either borrow it from Sora, or it can wait till I get home tomorrow."

"Fine."

The doorbell rang and Maya raced to get it, knowing that it was most likely Mrs Yoshinaga arriving to collect her. Sora had invited Maya to a sleepover, Kamala as well. Damon had happily agreed to it, having already met both of Sora's parents, and Maya was thrilled to be going on her very first sleepover.

"Hello Mrs Yoshinaga."

"Hello Maya, and please, call me Mio."

"Would you like to come in Mio?"

The older woman smiled at Maya and stepped inside the house, smiling, and greeting Damon, who'd followed Maya down the hall, carrying the bag she'd forgotten when she raced to answer the door.

"Hello Damon, It's wonderful to see you again. Thank you for allowing Maya to come to Sora's sleepover, I know my daughter is thrilled to have her friends coming over."

"Hello Mio. It's no problem, Sora has been a very good friend to Maya, and I know how much Maya is looking forward to going as well."

Maya accepted the backpack Damon held out for her and put it on before giving her godfather a slightly awkward hug. She might have finally started opening up to him, but hugs weren't something she was used to. The first hug she could remember receiving had been from Hermione, right after Maya had tackled a mountain troll to save her. There had been more since then, but still not enough to make them feel natural to Maya.

If Damon was surprised by the hug, he didn't show it, gently hugging her back. Mio's smile was full of warmth and understanding when Maya finally pulled away.

"Ready Maya?"

"Yep."

"Good. I'll apparate home with her tomorrow at about noon if that works for you, Damon?"

"That's fine with me." Damon smiled at Maya, "Have fun, and be good for Mio."

"I will."

"Hold on to my arm as tightly as you can Maya while I side-along-apparate with you."

Maya gripped the arm Mio held out to her as tightly as she could. The next thing she knew, everything went black; she was being pressed very hard from all directions; she could not breathe, there were iron bands tightening around her chest; her eyeballs were being forced back into her head; her eardrums were being pushed deeper into her skull, and then –

Maya gulped in as much air as she could. She felt as though she had just been forced through a very tight rubber tube.

"Maya!"

Maya had just enough time to brace herself before Kamala barrelled into her, enveloping her in a fierce hug. It was no less awkward than the hug she had given Damon, especially on the heels of the awfulness that was apparition, but after a moment Maya managed to relax into it and hug her friend back. As soon as Kamala stepped back, Sora stepped forward to give Maya a hug as well, she was a lot less expressive then Kamala, so her hug was softer but no less warm.

The three girls headed to Sora's bedroom. Sora and her family lived in the embassy of Magical Japan, a grand mansion on Long Island. Sora's room was comfortable and chic, with blue walls and a cherry blossom motif bordering the top and bottom of each wall. The bedroom was spacious, about twice the size of Maya's own, with its own living room space that featured two sofa's and an armchair arranged around a coffee table. Maya pulled her history book and notes out of her bag before setting it down next to Kamala's, and sitting on the sofa opposite her two friends.

Their group project for History was due in just over a week and the girls had had to promise they would get some schoolwork done before they were given permission to have the sleepover. They were still planning to have some fun though. The mansion had a couple of TVs, warded to work around magic, and they were planning on watching a movie later, plus Kamala had suggested some games they could play which were apparently common pastimes at sleepovers. Maya, having never been to a sleepover before, was taking Kamala's word for it, as was Sora, who'd only been to sleepovers in Japan with other wixen before, and so had no idea about traditional American sleepover games.

First though, they needed to get some work done on their project. They'd been studying the formation of the United States of America in class, starting with the colonisation and emigration of Europeans, both magical and mundane. The project they'd been assigned, was to create a timeline of events from Christopher Columbus's first voyage of exploration in 1492, up to the signing of the Declaration of Independence. It had to include all significant events that occurred in both magical and mundane societies in America during that period, some events were the same, like the Salem Witch Trials, and some were different, like the founding of Ilvermony. They had to include a fact sheet on each of the colonies founded by European nations, as well as a fact sheet on the creation of MACUSA in 1693 and how it differed from the establishment of other magical governments.

It was a big project and worth 40% of their final grade for the semester and all three girls wanted to do well on it. Sora and Maya were both playing catch-up when it came to American history and Kamala and Maya were both playing catch-up on magical history. Professor Binns had not been a good teacher, so even the year Maya had on Kamala when it came to magical education wasn't really that much of an advantage. The girls had decided to divide the research up and then copy and share their notes with each other before working together to create a first draft and then the final draft.

Maya passed over copies of her notes on Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, New France, and New Spain, and accepted the notes Sora and Kamala had made on their split of the colonies, and the creation of MACUSA. For a while all the girls were quiet as they each read through the notes made by the others.

"Okay so the timeline starts with Christopher Columbus landing in the Caribbean in 1492." Sora said after a while.

"Should we make a note that the wixen world were in communication with communities in North America in the 7th century and possibly even earlier? Or that the first actual colonisation by Europeans was the Vikings five hundred years prior to Columbus?" Maya asked.

"We were told to start the timeline with Christopher Columbus. So maybe we should just include it in the fact sheet on the formation of MACUSA, and do an extra fact sheet about the Viking colonies."

Sora nodded in agreement with Kamala's suggestion and Maya made a note of it on the piece of paper they were using for their first draft of the timeline.

"Spain claimed Florida as part of their empire in 1513, and the first permanent European settlement in North America was founded in 1565."

"They claimed Texas for their empire as well, in 1519, but didn't colonize it until much later. Roanoke was colonized by the British for the first time in 1585."

Maya nodded and made a note of both of those adding another note that it was abandoned in 1586 and recolonized in 1587. The three girls continued working on the project until they got called for dinner by Mio. At which point they'd completed their first draft of the timeline and the different fact sheets.

After dinner, the girls piled into one of the lounges with a TV and watched WALL-E, with Sora's younger siblings Hana and Daiki. They were twins, nine-years old, and were in grade 4 of the Academy's Elementary school. At the end of the movie, all of them agreed that WALL-E was adorable and funny, but the overall story had a sadness to it, even if it ended on a hopeful note. They got ready for bed after the movie and then played some of the games Kamala had suggested.

M.A.S.H. was a silly game that supposedly foretold the future, none of the girls took it seriously, all well aware of real divination, even if Kamala was the only one of them with a talent for it. They still found it hilarious to play though. Twenty questions had been a lot of fun as well, as had This or That. By the time Mio came in and told them to turn the lights out and go to sleep, Maya felt like they'd been giggling non-stop for hours. When Mio took her home the next day, Maya was very happy with how her first ever sleepover had gone.

Dear Luna,

Thanks for your last letter, it was great to hear from you. I'm missing everyone back in Britain, but I love living in New York with Damon and attending the Academy. I have a lot more subjects than I did at Hogwarts, so I spend a lot of time studying, but there's been no near-death experiences yet so that's a plus!

Damon is great! He's continuing to take me on outings, last week we visited the Museum of Modern Art, which was really cool. Damon's not much into art but he knows how much I like it. Before we went, we stopped at this café, and I ended up telling him about last year at Hogwarts. He didn't blame me for any of it! He told me he loves me, and I finally said it back. Damon is the best guardian in the world and I'm so grateful for Lady Magic making him my godfather.

He's been able to tell me lots of stories about my family, not so much about my mum, but he's been telling me about my grandparents, my great-grandparents, and my great-great-grandparents. Maggie and Enzo have been telling me stories about my grandparents as well. It's great to finally know a little bit about my family. Stefan bought me a journal to write in like Dr Acesco suggested but I never know what to write so I've just drawn some pictures in it so far. They've all been really great, nothing at all like the Dursley's.

Kamala and Sora are awesome as well, we've become really good friends since I started at the Academy. They're not replacements for any of you, and Dr Acesco says I shouldn't feel bad for making new friends, that you wouldn't want me to be lonely here, so I hope that's true. Kamala is a channeler and Sora is a wixen. We had a sleepover at Sora's house Saturday night. I say house but it's more of a mansion, her dad's the current ambassador for Magical Japan so they live in the embassy. I've never been to a sleepover before, but it was tons of fun and we're planning on going to the school dance together.

Has Dumbledore given up yet, or is he still trying to figure out a way to make you tell him where I am? Don't worry if he is, Professor Aradia says there's no way she'll let him force me to go back to Britain if he does find me.

How are you? How is second year of Hogwarts going? Tell me everything!

Love Maya.

It was Maya's first ever school dance. Little Whinging Primary had held one for the year six leavers, but Maya had been locked in the cupboard at the time and hadn't attended. Hogwarts hadn't held a school dance last year and Maya didn't think it was something they really did. The Academy held several throughout the year for the Junior School and the High School, usually about a week apart, and tonight was the first one of the year for the Junior School.

Maggie and Lexi had taken her shopping for a dress and shoes last weekend. Maya had pointed out the many dresses Damon had purchased for her when she first arrived, but none of them had been deemed suitable for a school dance for one reason or another. Though Maya was privately sure that the two vampires just wanted an excuse to take her shopping. Not that she hadn't enjoyed it. Shopping with Maggie and Lexi had been a lot of fun, but also sort of wistful when Maya thought about her mum and how they would never have a 'girly day', as Lexi had termed it. After the shopping was done, they'd even taken her to a spa to have her nails painted to match her dress.

Maya's dress was a stunning contrast of gold and emerald, catching the light with every movement. The top was all gold, sleeveless, with a round neckline. The skirt flowed from a wide gold band at her waist, cascading down in an asymmetric hemline that revealed one of her legs up to her ankle, and draped over the other in a graceful curve. A single gold stripe ran down the centre of the skirt, adding a touch of elegance. She'd completed the look with a pair of gold shoes that matched the bodice.

Today after Maya came back from school, Maggie and Lexi had come over to help her get ready. Maggie was a whiz at hair styling, and she transformed Maya's locks into a sophisticated up-do with some loose curls framing her face. Maya admired herself in the mirror, feeling pleased with her appearance. She remembered how a few months ago, the dress would have hung loosely on her thin frame, exposing her prominent bones. She'd put on almost five pounds since arriving in New York, she still wasn't where she needed to be for her age and height, but she looked much healthier than before.

Professor Mephisto had charmed all their portkey's in Homeroom that morning, so when Maya slipped it onto her wrist it turned gold to match the top part of her dress. The last thing Maya put on was a delicate gold necklace of a small jasmine flower, a gift from Damon. Once she was ready, Maya went downstairs to show off her outfit, before leaving for the dance. Everyone was very complimentary, and Damon took several photographs before he would allow Maya to leave.

The portkey delivered her to the school gates, where Kamala and Sora were waiting. Sora's dress was a paler gold than Maya's, it reached just above her knees, and was adorned with intricate embroidery on the bodice and hem. Kamala's outfit was a traditional Pakistani shalwar kameez in blue, the long tunic style dress had gold patterns embroidered on the cuffs, neckline, and hem, and underneath she wore a pair of loose pants. Both of them had chosen to wear their hair loose around their shoulders, Sora in slight waves and Kamala a bit curlier than normal.

"You two look amazing."

Maya greeted them both with a massive smile and a small hug each.

"So do you." Sora replied.

"I love your dress, and your hair, it looks brilliant. Did you do it yourself?"

"Maggie did it for me, I could never get it to look this neat."

Kamala and Sora both laughed, Maya's hair might be much tamer now than it used to be, but it still tended to be a bit unmanageable, and they both knew it. Maggie had done a good job to get it to look so neat, although she had used liberal amounts of a charmed styling cream that the hairdresser had suggested the last time Maggie had taken Maya to get it trimmed.

When the girls entered the ballroom where the dance was being held, they were stunned at the amazing decorations that filled the hall. The dance committee had chosen to use blue and orange as the main colours though they had added some white and silver as well. Half of the room was filled with round tables dressed all in blue, as were the chairs, except for orange bows tied on the back of them. Every table had an ice sculpture as the centrepiece, each one carved into the shape of a different magical creature and charmed not to melt.

Fabrics in blue, orange, white, and silver, draped across the ceiling and down the walls, and images of stars, charmed to move, were constantly swirling across them. In one corner was an arch created out of blue, orange, and white flowers, where a photographer would take pictures of the students later in the evening. Beyond the tables was a dance floor with a DJ station, also draped in blue with orange balloons tied on either side, and currently playing soft instrumental music. The chandelier above had been spelled to act like a muggle disco ball, spinning round and throwing different colours across the dancefloor.

"Good evening girls."

"Good evening, Professor Aradia."

Professor Aradia was wearing a toga-style, one sleeved dress, in a rich blue colour that matched the decorations in the hall. She smiled widely at the three girls as they returned her greeting.

"Why don't you go and find a seat, girls, dinner will be served before the dancing commences."

All three of them nodded and at Maya's urging headed towards a table where Ronan, his cousin Aidan, and a couple of other students from their year were already sitting. Maya took a seat next to Ronan and Kamala took a seat next to a boy named Jason, who was in their Science class, leaving a space for Sora in between them.

"Hey, Maya, hey Sora, hey Kamala, you all look great. Don't they Aidan?"

Aidan looked up from his phone and glanced at the three girls, nodded slightly, and then looked back down. Maya hid a laugh behind her hand as Ronan rolled her eyes at his cousin. Maya shared computer studies class and technomancy club with Aidan and knew that he was much more interested in computers, gaming, and coding than anything else. She figured he was probably only at the dance because Ronan had bribed him into coming somehow.

"Thanks Ronan."

Maya leaned forward and spoke in a mock whisper.

"So, what did you bribe Aidan with to get him to come?"

"He has to come to a gaming convention with me."

Aidan replied before Ronan could, causing his cousin to roll his eyes again, as all three girls laughed this time. After that conversation flowed easily amongst the small group at the table, Aidan even put his phone away and joined in after a few minutes.

When dinner was announced, a small card appeared on each of their plates with the three meal options that were being served. Maya chose the lemon-chicken with couscous salad, ticking off that option on the card with one of the pens that had been left on the table. Her card disappeared as soon as she ticked the box and the meal simultaneously appeared on her plate. Dinner was lovely as was dessert; mixed fruit served with sorbet, and the conversation amongst the group carried on throughout, as they discussed classes, clubs, quidditch, and plans for the upcoming half-term.

Once the meal was over the dance portion of the evening kicked off. Maya, Sora, and Kamala made sure to get a photo of the three of them together from the official photographer, but after that they spent the whole evening dancing. Ronan and Jason spent a lot of time dancing with the three of them, with Aidan and some of their other table mates occasionally joining in. By the time the music ended at nine, Maya was breathless, flushed, and laughing. Her first school dance had been amazing.

Moving to New York had definitely been the best choice she could have made.