Year 1, chapter 3
Elle woke just as dawn was breaking over the London skyline. She had barely slept, the nerves and excitement had kept her tossing and turning all night. She forced herself to stay in her room for a while, knowing that the train didn't leave until 10am (it said so on the shiny ticket that had fallen out of her letter the first time she had opened it) and that being too early would make her stand out, which she was determined not to do. She spent the time rereading her letter, nervously returning to the part that told her to board the train at platform nine and three quarters. She had found out from her stay at the Leaky Cauldron that you were meant to walk through the barrier between platform nine and ten to access this platform. Even after spending the last two weeks in the magic-filled streets of Diagon Alley however, she felt like this was a terrible trick. All she could think about was getting to the station with her trunk, and running straight into solid wall, the last two weeks having been some impossibly elaborate practical joke, or perhaps just a dream that had bled much too convincingly into reality.
Finally, after a breakfast that she could barely touch from nerves, she set off towards King's Cross station. A few of the old wizards at the Leaky Cauldron were sad to see her go, and offered to accompany her to the station, but Elle, though tempted, had refused. This felt like something Elle had to do alone. Besides, she knew how to blend in with muggles (she really still felt like a muggle herself). If the way the wizards at the Leaky Cauldron dressed or talked about 'crazy' muggle inventions such as the underground was anything to go off of, she reckoned going alone was her best bet in not standing out too much.
She boarded the transit system with her trunk in one hand and Cat's carrier (which he had only reluctantly consented to enter after much begging on Elle's part) without much hassle. But it was after that that the trouble began. First, her connecting train was late. Then, she dropped her trunk, which was heavy and unwieldly and really hard to handle with one hand, down the stairs as she was exiting the underground. The trunk itself hadn't fallen open, which Elle thought would've been much worse, with all the wizarding books and robes strewn across the tube station, but all the same one of the loose buckles was now completely broken. Every couple of steps she took dragging the battered thing behind her made the latch pop open, and then the contents of her trunk really did start to spill out, so she had to hurriedly close it, and then repeat the process all over again after another few steps. It took her almost forty minutes to travel the last bit of road she had left to get to King's Cross, and if a nice man in a business suit hadn't carried the trunk across the road for her, she probably would never had made it inside at all.
As it stood, even though she had given herself plenty of travel time, by the time she got to the barrier between platforms nine and ten, the clock read nine fifty-six. She only had four minutes to enter the station and board the train! Elle could feel her cheeks blushing as the dull roar of panic threatened to leap forward in her chest. She had hoped to wait around the barriers, watching other wizard families as they entered onto the platform, but there seemed to be only muggles around her, none of them paying any mind to the seemingly normal platform barrier behind them. There wasn't time to think at all – Elle simply grabbed her trunk and carrier and walked (she would've run if her trunk had allowed it) towards the apparently solid wall. She flinched horribly as she passed the brick barrier but didn't stop.
Suddenly, she was through. And what an amazing sight it was. The platform was crowded with witches and wizards seeing their kids off to school. Most of the children were sticking their heads out of windows, having already boarded the scarlet Hogwarts Express. Elle's trunk latch popped open again unhelpfully. There was already steam billowing from the train. She was going to miss it. Tears brimmed in her eyes and threatened to spill over as she strained to pull the heavy trunk closer to one of the doors. Just as she could see the wheels of the train start to move and she was about to give up completely, she felt the weight of the trunk lift from behind her. "Come on, jump!" a kind, but urgent male voice said. Elle didn't even turn around, she just leapt onto the train steps, hugging Cat's carrier close to her chest. A second later her trunk landed beside her, having been thrown in right after. Elle whipped her head around to thank whoever had helped her, but she only caught a glimpse of bright turquoise hair before the train picked up speed and the doors magically clanged shut. Just like that, her journey to Hogwarts began.
Elle had entered the train right at the end, and already in front of her children were poking their heads out from the carriage doors, looking for friends they hadn't seen all summer. She saw a frisbee swoop out from one door and into another, and she could've sworn that it had fangs. Deciding she didn't want to try and trek through all that commotion with her damaged trunk, and correctly guessing that it was mostly older students who had the privilege of sitting at the front of the train, Elle walked towards the closest carriage, directly to her left. It seemed to be mostly empty, with only three students that looked to be first years as well inside. This would be the first time she had met other witches and wizards her age, and she tried her best not to show how nervous she was.
If Elle had wanted to make a grand entrance to the carriage, impressing its occupants, she didn't succeed. Just as she dragged her trunk through the door the tired latch finally just completely gave out, and half a dozen used spell books tumbled out before she could slam it shut. "I -oh -sorry" was all Elle managed to choke out as she knelt down to hurriedly pick up the spilled contents of her school trunk. She expected to hear the sniggering start as she looked firmly at the ground in front of her and picked up her books. Instead, she heard an excited voice say, 'let me try and fix it!'. Elle looked up and saw a boy her age pointing a wand towards the latch of her broken trunk. Elle hastily returned the books to their rightful place and stepped out of the way. The boy tossed his messy black hair out of his face and said in a firm voice 'repari'. The latch stayed put, still hanging wide open.
The girl with plaited brown hair sitting next to the boy giggled. 'It's repar-o Albus" she said, "watch me." The girl pointed her wand at the latch and repeated the phrase in a sure voice. The latch jumped back into its rightful place at once. The girl grinned in satisfaction. The boy named Albus groaned in response "repar-o of course! I swear I've only heard me mum do it to fix James' glasses about a thousand times." He sunk back in his seat, looking dejected. "Maybe I won't end up in Gryffindor or Slytherin, I'm a Hufflepuff through and through. "That wouldn't be so bad" Rose said in response. "You'd be in Teddy's old house." "Mate, whatever you are, you're a step ahead of me, because I haven't got a clue what either of you just said" piped up the boy sitting next to Elle.
"My name is Rose" the girl said pointedly, switching subjects. Evidently, she was the only one who had realized Elle hadn't been introduced. "This is my cousin Albus" she said, gesturing to the boy sitting next to her, who only managed a weak smile in response. "And I'm Sam" finished the boy next to her, sticking out a hand which Elle gingerly shook. "I'm Elle" she said trying her best to get over the embarrassment of her entrance into the carriage. "Do you know what they're talking about?" asked Sam, running his fingers through his short cropped and tightly curled black hair "please tell me I'm not the only muggle born in first year."
Elle shrugged. "My mum was- is" she abruptly corrected herself, hoping no one had noticed, " a muggle. But I've read a bit about the Hogwarts houses. Hufflepuff is for hard workers, and Slytherin is for cunning people" Elle paused, trying to remember "Gryffindor is for, um, bravery, and the last one, I can't remember the name, is for intelligence. Guess I won't be making it into that one" she finished, laughing a bit. "The last one's Ravenclaw" Rose added helpfully and continued to chatter to Sam about each house in more detail, talking about their colours, and the House Cup at the end of each year. Elle listened, settling into her chair. It seemed like the little group in the train carriage had accepted her readily. She smiled a bit to herself.
The next part of the train ride passed quickly. Elle laughed and talked to Rose and Sam. Albus mostly sulked in his seat, only really perking up when the trolley witch came around. Albus and Rose both bought a lot of treats to share with Elle and Sam who had also, to Elle's relief, not had any money to buy sweets. Elle decided she hated Bertie Botts Every Flavoured Beans after she bit into a grass one on her first try. She did like the chocolate frogs though, based purely off the surprised whoop Sam had let out when he opened the first one and the frog had leaped onto his head, and the fit of giggles that had come afterwards from all four of them.
Finally, the excitement of the train ride started to wear off in favour of the nerves approaching the sorting ceremony. They had all hurriedly changed into their robes and were now watching the sky outside the window get darker with growing unease. Elle grabbed a book from her trunk and started reading quietly, hoping to take her mind off of the upcoming sorting test. Sam was fiddling with his robe, and Rose was fussing over Albus, trying to flatten his unruly hair. All four jumped when the door to their carriage flew open.
Elle didn't need to be introduced to know that the boy who poked his head into their carriage was Albus' brother. The family resemblance was strong, even with though the older boy's hair was a dark red where Albus' was black. The newcomer surveyed the scene with a grin. "Getting ready to start your new Slytherin life Al?" he asked, stepping fully into the carriage, as which point Albus paled. "As a much older and wiser student, well learn-ed in the magical arts" he continued, his voice changing into a crude impression of a posh English accent "I must gravely inform you of your destiny. You share so many qualities with the original founder of Slytherin, Selwyn Slytherin himself- "At this point James Potter was interrupted in his monologue by a snort from his previously ignored left side. He turned to Elle with an eyebrow raised. She peered at him over the edge of her book.
"It's Salazar Slytherin, not Selwyn" she said, "it's practically the first sentence of Hogwarts: A History" she continued, pointing to the book she held in her hand with a tilt of her head. "Where did you dig that up?" James said, hurriedly switching subjects "it looks like that particular copy is about a hundred years out of print." Elle's cheeks flushed (he really did not need to know that in fact the book had been a parting gift from the man who had taught her exploding snaps at the Leaky Cauldron, Englebert Diggle, who had indeed been at least 108 years old). Choosing not to grace this last retort with a response Elle continued with her original point "It just seems to me that someone as well learn-ed (she emphasized the last syllable just as James had done) as you on the subject of Slytherin would know the founder's name." Sam let out a roaring laugh at this remark. You could tell James was trying very hard to appear nonchalant, and to not notice the giggling that Rose was unsuccessfully trying to stifle. Even Albus had a half smile on his face. "Whatever" James replied, stepping out of the carriage "we'll see what the sorting hat has to say" he added ominously before turning back down the hall.
As soon as James was out of earshot Rose gave up any pretense she had had and fell into a fit of giggles. Elle joined in, and Sam had never stopped laughing in the first place. Even Albus, who still seemed a bit pale, managed a shaky chuckle. "See Al?" Rose managed after her giggling had subsided. "James really doesn't know what he's talking about." Before Albus could agree or disagree however, the train rolled to a halt. The four students jumped to their feet, their focus fully returning to the upcoming sorting ceremony. Nervously, they all nodded to each other before gathering their things and unloading off the train.
The night was cool and clear, and a slight breeze welcomed Elle's face as she stepped out of the train doors. Standing on the train platform was the largest man Elle had ever seen. "Blimey, is that a giant?" Sam asked, bewildered. "he's only half giant" Albus replied matter-of-factly, unawares that Sam had only been joking.
"Fir' years" the strange man bellowed, his hair a tangled mess of pure white that gave the impression that his finger had recently been stuck in an electric socket. Albus and Rose set out towards the tall figure, grinning. Elle and Sam followed nervously behind, not sure of what to expect. However, the two muggle-borns soon realized that their fear had been misplaced. The large man greeted Albus and Rose enthusiastically. It soon became clear that the intimidating stature was misleading, as Hagrid, who introduced himself as Hogwarts gameskeeper, wouldn't hurt a fly.
In the many years to come, Elle would never forget the way she felt the first time she laid eyes upon Hogwarts castle as she approached it from the lake on the small fleet of boats that Hagrid spearheaded. It really seemed like something that would come out of a fairy tale – there were towers and turrets, great stone gargoyles and hundreds of windows bright with light. Despite its stony exterior however, the castle filled Elle with a warm and soft feeling of welcome. She felt, for the first time since she had left her small flat with her mother all those months ago, that she was entering a place that she could call home. None of the other children that she shared her boat with said anything, but she could detect similar senses of awe and appreciation from them.
Too soon, Elle thought, the boat ride was over, and the crowd of first year students was being ushered up the steps of the boathouse and into the castle. They were being guided now by a Professor Flitwick, who introduced himself as the Deputy Headmaster of Hogwarts and was of remarkably short stature. Some of the eleven-year-olds, Elle included (she was actually one of the tallest in the group) already had a few inches on the man. As Flitwick lead the students to the great hall, he spoke about the four houses (he mentioned he was head of Ravenclaw house) and how they would all be sorted into them soon. Elle listened intently, even though she had heard all of this information from Rose on the train and had read a great bit about it herself in her schoolbooks. Still, as Elle approached the entrance to the hall, she didn't feel prepared at all.
It felt like seconds after leaving the boat the grand doors to the great hall were opened. The group of first year students stumbled down the pathway in the middle of the hall, two great long tables on either side of them (Elle mentally paired each colour of banner hanging over each table with their respective houses – red and gold for Gryffindor, yellow and black for Hufflepuff, blue and bronze for Ravenclaw, and green and silver for Slytherin.) Many of the first years tripped over their robes as they gazed upwards. Elle didn't blame them - there didn't seem to be a ceiling at all, the floating candles overheard giving away to clear blue-black sky. If she hadn't just read on the train that the ceiling was enchanted to look like the sky outside, she would've thought the great hall offered only outdoor dining.
At the end of their walk stood the long horizontal table where the professors all sat, smiling warmly at the new students. Elle spotted McGonagall right away, as she was sitting right in the middle, directly in front of their path. Hagrid was a few seats to her left. In front of the staff table sat a small three-legged stool, upon which rested the most ancient hat that Elle had ever seen. The first years reached the end of their path and milled about nervously. Suddenly, the hat in front of them came alive. What Elle had mistaken for an odd fold in the fabric a moment ago became a mouth, and from it the hat began its song
I am the great wise sorting hat,
Come, gather! listen close to me
No witch or wizard here has sat
Who has not heeded my decree
Once, long ago, four founders stood
United with the common goal
Of teaching magic well and good
An education full and whole
'bravery and heroic deed,
Were favoured by strong Gryffindor,
Fair Hufflepuff thought what we need,
Was to nurture drive and just core
Sly Slytherin sought out to seek
most cunning and ambitious feats
And 'twas great brains ranked at the peak
That sharp Ravenclaw meant to meet
The time of the four came to end
Just as all great ages do,
And so, it's me they've come to send
To sort all students come anew
But times have changed since those four sat
Atop this great big hall; So while
I am the great wise sorting hat
Brave, just, sly smart live within all
The sorting hat finished his song by bending his pointed tip towards the floor, in a crude approximation of a bow. The great hall was filled with thundering applause, but it quickly died down as Flitwick, who had stepped up on the platform next to the hat and stool in order to differentiate his height from those of the first-year students in front of him, held up a long roll of parchment and cleared his throat. 'Oh no' Elle heard Sam, who had been standing to her left, mutter, clearly realizing a fact that had not occurred to him until this exact moment. A millisecond later, Flitwick called out the first name – Samson Aaron. Elle looked over to Sam and tried to smile encouragingly. Sam didn't notice however, his eyes already firmly fixed on the hat in front of him with a sort of grim determination.
Sam sat on the stool, and met Elle's gaze for a moment, before his entire face was obstructed from view as the sorting hat was placed on his head, covering him up to his shoulders. The hall was completely silent for a few tense moments. Looking back, it couldn't have been more than thirty seconds, but to Elle it felt like hours before the hat called out in a thundering voice Hufflepuff! Flitwick removed the hat to reveal a beaming Sam, who moved to join the table adorned in yellow that was roaring its applause. Elle could hear Rose clapping enthusiastically behind her as well.
Elle stood and watched as the crowd of first year students in front of her slowly thinned. Alice Bader went to Gryffindor … Cecil Centauri was a Slytherin …. Ruth Feng went to Ravenclaw … Scorpius Malfoy went to Slytherin as well… the names seemed to all blend together as Elle watched Flitwick slowly make his way down the scroll with growing anxiety. The only thing that brought her briefly out of her own head was when Flitwick called out 'Albus Potter'. The great hall, which at this point in the listing was starting to grow a bit restless grew quiet once again. Elle got a sense from some of the murmuring that followed that the name Albus Potter meant something to the group of students in front of her. She watched as Albus, whose black hair stuck out ever more vibrantly since his skin was white as a sheet, took a few shaky steps and sat gingerly down on the stool.
Where Elle had felt as if the sorting hat had taken minutes to sort Sam, she was sure that it was actually true for Albus. The murmuring had raised in volume to almost muttering before the hat called out Slytherin in a loud and resounding voice. The great hall was filled with uncomfortable silence for a few seconds, before the green table to Elle's left started clapping disjointedly. Glancing to her right, Elle spotted James Potter sitting at the Gryffindor table, a look of shock plainly on his face. Albus made his way shakily to the green table, sitting next to a pale blonde boy who offered him a smile. Albus's eyes had a faraway look to them, and Elle frowned. She resolved to go talk to him after the feast.
After Albus was sorted, the names seemed to fly by. Before Elle knew it, she was watching Rose walk up to the stool herself, leaving her to stand alone amongst the few uncertain looking students whose names came at the end of the alphabetical list. It only took the sorting hat around ten seconds to roar out Gryffindor. Elle smiled broadly at Rose. her face bright red with excitement. However, her stomach couldn't help but lurch uncomfortably – all three of her train companions were now in separate houses, and Elle couldn't help but worry that she would drift apart from her first tentative friendships. She didn't have much time to think about it however, as Flitwick called her name out soon after.
Elle didn't even remember walking out of the crowd and onto the platform, nor could she recall sitting down. However, she had apparently done those things, as she was now looking at the great hall from the front for the first time. Elle glanced at all four tables, taking it all in for one last moment before the hat was placed on her head. Finally, her eyes rested on the Gryffindor table, where Rose sat, smiling at her encouragingly. The only other face she recognized at the table was James', who was watching her with a sort of passive curiosity. Then, the hall went dark.
For a fleeting second Elle thought there had been a power outage, until she smelled the old oiled leather of the hat that now covered her face. She flinched ever so slightly when a voice reached her ears. No, that wasn't right Elle realized. The voice was directly in her head.
Clever girl… the hat spoke to her. I can see a deep thirst for knowledge here. 'Gryffindor' Elle thought desperately, thinking of Rose. To her surprise, the hat responded. Ah, yes. I see great courage here, already put to the test in such a young heart. But there is more here for me to explore… great pride and ambition would shine well in Slytherin… Elle thought of Albus and decided that might not be half bad. 'such deep loyalty to friends might place you in Hufflepuff.. the hat replied, 'this is a tough one' the hat continued… 'I need a moment to think….' Elle squirmed uncomfortably in her chair as the moments passed by. At times she heard the hat mutter 'sly' and others, 'clever'. Once she heard the full sentence "brave, but careful". To distract herself from the sweat trickling down her back, Elle started to wonder about the hat itself. As she was musing about how the leather had not degraded after the centuries of use, she was brought out of her thoughts by the soft chuckling of the hat, who immediately followed by speaking 'RAVENCLAW'! This last word left Elle's head and reverberated through the hall. At once, the great hall was revealed to her again, and she immediately found the blue and silver table that was clapping enthusiastically. Some of the older students had even stood up to get a better look at her, which Elle thought odd.
"Seven minutes and three seconds to decide on a house! A true hatstall!" one of the older students said by way of greeting as Elle took her place at the long dining table. "How rare! So exciting we got to witness it, glad to have you with us. What was the other house the hat was considering for you" he asked, speaking quickly and without pause, pushing his glasses farther up nose and looking at her curiously. "Err… Slytherin I think" Elle replied. "Fascinating" he replied, looking like he meant that sincerely. "I'm Louis by the way, Louis Weasley. One of the Ravenclaw Prefects." He finished, proudly tapping the silver pin that adorned his black robes. "Oh!" said Elle, "are you Rose's brother?" The older boy laughed, which made his shoulder length blond hair shimmer in the candlelight "No, a cousin. There are a lot of us around here". Louis had just opened his mouth to speak again when the sorting hat announcing 'HUFFLEPUFF' to the great hall made them both jump. They turned their attention again towards the rest of the ceremony.
Evelyn Zhang was the final student, and she was also the also the last Ravenclaw. She took her seat opposite Elle, flashing a smile. After the last claps from the Ravenclaw table had died down, Headmistress McGonagall stood up, and the great hall again fell into complete silence.
"Welcome all Hogwarts students, both new and returning" McGonagall began, "There are a few rules that I would like to highlight for those new among us, and to serve as a reminder for a few older students" McGonagall's eyes flitted to where James Potter sat amongst a few other rowdy third year boys. "There will be no wandering the halls after dark, and the Forbidden Forrest, so aptly named, is Forbidden to all students. You can find a full list of all banned magical items at the office of our caretaker, Mr. Goyle" Elle thought she saw McGonagall's upper lip curl ever so slightly at that last bit, but if she had, the grimace was quickly replaced with a thin smile as McGonagall finished her speech "please refer to your prefects, should you have any more questions about the rules. Now. Eat!" McGonagall raised her arms at the last word of her speech and instantly the plates of the great hall were filled with food.
Elle had never seen a feast so great in her entire life. Each plate was overflowing with food, and the hall was immediately full of mouth-watering smells. Roast chicken glistened under the candlelight, baked potatoes steamed in a bowl to her right, there were sausage rolls and pasties, a thick bubbling beef stew, and dozens of different drinks all in large pitchers, condensation clinging to the glass in thick beads. Elle was in heaven. She thought she had eaten very well at the Leaky Cauldron, but this was a whole new level. She ate until she thought she might burst, and still somehow found room for a blueberry crumble when the plates changed to dessert.
While she was still pilling food on her plate, Elle almost dropped a whole ladle of gravy when the castle ghosts made their grand entrance, swooping down from the ceiling and flying through the walls. 'Wow' Evelyn breathed to across the table, making Elle believe that ghosts weren't a very common occurrence, even in the wizarding world. A pearly white ghost with a morose face drifted off from the formation of ghosts at the end of their show, gliding across the Ravenclaw table right behind Evelyn, who got a shade paler and became suddenly very interested in eating her mashed potatoes.
The ghost seemed to not notice the effect she had on the first years near her and left the hall by gliding straight through a stone wall. "That's the ghost of Ravenclaw tower" Louis pointed out. "She's pretty shy – she almost never stays to chat at the feasts" Elle nodded, trying not to look too relieved. "Tower?" Evelyn inquired, dropping into their conversation. "Is that where we'll be sleeping?" "Oh yes" Louis replied animatedly, and continued chattering on about the dorm arrangements, clearly taking his role as mentor very seriously. "The student population has grown exponentially in recent years" Louis continued after quite a while, piquing Elle's interest and taking her concentration away from the last few bites of her blueberry crumble. "After the war, when Voldemort had really gone away for good, tons of families felt safe enough to have kids. My dad and his sibling's generation was unusually small, because the first war was going on when they were being born. No one wanted to have kids. When some of my aunts and uncles were in school, they could barely fill up one dorm room per year! Isn't that crazy? Now my arithromancy professor reckons we're back to average wizard population demographics, about a thousand students in Hogwarts at one time. Each dorm room in Ravenclaw tower houses up to five students, your names will be on the doors by the time we go up. Each level of the tower represents one year here, the older you are the higher you are. The views are great."
Evelyn had clearly lost interest in Louis's enthusiastic retelling of wizarding statistics, but Elle was listening intently. She hadn't read much about recent history in the wizarding world. "So there's about 140-150 students in each year then?" Elle asked, quickly dividing the thousand by seven in her head "A little under forty in each house?" Louis pushed his glasses farther up his nose and smiled at her "That's the really interesting thing actually. Students aren't evenly divided into houses by the sorting hat. Slytherin is the pickiest – they usually don't take more than 25 students per year, and Gryffindor is pretty similar – around 25 to 30 in a year. Ravenclaw is typically next, usually around 40 students. All the rest go to Hufflepuff. It's why Ravenclaw tower has more runes in its interior walls, lots of them are space related – the tower looks to be the same size as Gryffindor tower from the outside, but it houses almost double the students."
"I wonder why Slytherin is so picky" Elle speculated aloud, thinking about her near placement there. Louis's smiled faltered. "it's about blood purity I reckon. Slytherin pretty much only takes purebloods and halfbloods. The number of exceptions has been growing since the war though. And the headmistress has instituted a lot of changes to try and promote interhouse bonding" Suddenly, Elle felt sick. The food that she had eaten so enthusiastically now settled like a rock in her stomach. Blood purity? What was that about? Whatever it was, it didn't sound good. It didn't take a genius to intuit that Elle was not a pureblood, unless muggle bartender mothers had an inexplicable high status in the wizarding world. Maybe that's why the hat had picked Ravenclaw. She frowned to herself, vowing to ask Rose or Albus more about it later.
Louis hadn't seemed to notice Elle's reaction to his speech and was continuing by delineating some of the interhouse bonding initiatives "one of the biggest changes is that you don't have to sit at a designated table in the dining hall except on holiday occasions like the sorting ceremony or Halloween" Louis rambled, making Elle light up. She could sit with her friends from the train at breakfast tomorrow!
"another change…" Louis tried to continue, but he never finished his thought, as the collective scraping of benches as students stood up cut him off. Both Louis and Elle had been so caught up in their conversation that they hadn't noticed the food in front of them had vanished, signalling the end of the feast. Louis stood up hastily and began shouting "First years follow me! This way to Ravenclaw tower." Elle glanced ruefully at her empty plate, where the last bites of blueberry crumble she had been meaning to eat had been moments before, before following the steady stream of students out of the dining hall, trying to keep up with the flash of Louis's silvery blonde hair.
It was just as Elle reached the bottom of Ravenclaw tower that she remembered Albus. She had really meant to talk to him at the end of the feast. She looked desperately over her shoulder, but there were no students from other houses in sight, and she had no idea where the Slytherins slept. Frowning, Elle hoped he was doing okay. She couldn't get over the faraway look he had in his eyes as he sat down at the Slytherin table.