“Nott, Charles!” Professor McGonagall’s voice rang through the Great Hall. A short, skinny blond boy detached himself from the throng of first-years, heading for the three-legged stool which held the sorting hat.
Albus swallowed nervously as the hat screamed, “Slytherin!”, and threw a glance at his cousin Rosie. To his dismay, the younger girl (he prided himself on being three months and a day older than her) looked completely calm, almost bored. She looked up at him, her bright blue eyes seeming to sparkle in the light from the hundreds of candles that floated above them.
“Don’t worry so much, Al,” she reassured him. “You’ll make it into Gryffindor.”
Albus blushed. For as long as he could remember, his cousin had been able to read him like a book, even when he was doing his best to hide his emotions. She was his best friend in the world, but sometimes he wished she didn’t know him so well.
“Potter, Albus!”
“Good luck,” Rosie whispered, and pushed him gently forward. Albus trotted nervously up the aisle, picked up the hat, and took a seat on the stool. The hat was so large, it fell down around him, completely covering his head.
“Another Potter, hmm?” a voice whispered in his ear. “I’m suspecting you’ll want to be put in Gryffindor. Well, let’s see… You’re intelligent, so I could put you in Ravenclaw. You’re brave, so you would fit in Gryffindor. But, more than anything else… you’re clever, boy. You do what you have to in order to obtain what you want.”
“No!” Albus thought furiously. “I don’t want to go to Slytherin!”
“Like father, like son, eh? Fine then. GRYFFINDOR!”
The hat roared the last word out loud, and the table furthest to the right burst into wild cheers. A few of Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes Famous Never-ending Fireworks (a new model Uncle George had just invented) flew into the air, courtesy of Scorpius and Molly. James grinned as his little brother sat down next to him.
“I guess I’ll have to put up with you being here, too. Try not to trip up too much, little bro.”
“James!” Molly punched him in the arm. “Be nice to your brother. Remember what happened last time you teased him around your mother?”
James shuddered at the thought. Never again did he want to be on the receiving end of his mother’s bat-bogie hex. Scorpius laughed at the look on James’ face and glanced up at the staff table, from which Headmistress McGonagall was calling names. All the staff, except for Hagrid, were seated, facing the students, speaking quietly among themselves. Professor Blade was seated at the very end of the table, his eyes half closed. Professor Weasley-Granger was watching the fireworks her niece had set off with a disapproving glare.
“Weasley, Rose!” McGonagall called out, causing everyone who knew Rosie to wince. Anyone who called her Rose got a fierce kick in the shin. Somehow, she managed to contain herself. The hat had barely touched the top of her hair before it screamed, “Gryffindor!” Albus cheered as loudly as he could with the rest. Rosie sat down on his right, silently fuming about her name.
“I really hope this ends soon,” Scorpius grumbled as “Yaxley, Gordan” became a Ravenclaw. “I’m starving!”
“You’re always starving,” Molly waved her hand. “But I think that’s the last person.”
As “Zephire, Marcus” headed happily for the Hufflepuff table, McGonagall stood up, and smiled at the students for the first and, more than likely, only time in the school year.
“To our new students,” she began, “we welcome you to Hogwarts. We also welcome our old students, but not their fireworks.” She gave a pointed stare in Molly’s direction. “I am sure you are all very hungry, but I must first make two introductions. First, Professor Grubbley-Plank will be substituting for Hagrid in Care of Magical Creatures this year, as our gamekeeper is gone on his honeymoon. We welcome you back to Hogwarts, Professor.” There was a brief round of applause, and Headmistress McGonagall continued. “Also, filling the post of Defense against the Dark Arts after our poor Professor Motley had his… accident…”
Scorpius, James, and Molly all grinned at each other. The “accident” had been a rather nasty prank involving exploding gift cards, rubber balls, and a camel (that had been Scorpius’ idea). Still, the old coot had deserved it; he was as racist against half breeds as Deloris Umbridge.
“Is Professor Blade,” McGonagall finished. “Professor, would you like to say a few words?”
“Ah…” Professor Blade opened his eyes all the way and stood up, ruffling his hair. “Sure. I’m looking forward to a good year, I hope. I want to get to know you all, but right now I’m a little tired, so… good night.” He sat down again and closed his eyes.
“Does he sleep all the time?” Molly whispered in James’ ear. He shrugged.
“Maybe it’s jetlag. He has an American accent.”
“Why would he have taken a plane here, though? Wouldn’t it have been much easier to just apperate?”
James shrugged. “Don’t quote me on this, but I overheard dad and mom talking a few nights ago. America is having some problems with a dark wizard who calls himself “The Night”. People are saying he’s already as powerful as Voldemort was in his prime, but all we’ve really heard are rumors. The Ministry over there doesn’t want to ask for help until they need it. It would have probably been safer to travel like a Muggle.”
Finally, the plates filled themselves with food, and everyone attacked them with a passion. The feasting continued for two hours without event. Finally, when James was sure he could eat no more, the food vanished, and Professor McGonagall stood again.
“Before you all rush off to bed, I would like to inform you new students and remind some of you older students that the Forbidden Forest is forbidden for a reason. Anyone caught there will receive two months worth of detention, and the possibility of suspension. Our caretaker, Mr. Filch, has asked me to remind you yet again that the list of forbidden items has been stretched to cover anything from Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, and students caught with said items will receive an immediate detention. Now, to bed! You all have a big day tomorrow.”
James, Albus, Rosie, Molly, and Scorpius made their way slowly through the crowd, heading for Gryffindor tower. The throng of students thinned considerably as they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady. Molly sighed contentedly and stretched her arms wide above her head.
“I’m exhausted,” she sighed. “Does anyone know the password?”
“It’s Draconis Legius,” a soft voice came from behind them. “I overheard a few of the prefects talking.”
James felt his heart skip a beat as he turned to face the speaker. It was Shannon McGonagall, Professor McGonagall’s granddaughter. The two looked almost nothing alike; Shannon was pretty (at least, James thought so) with stringy black hair that fell to her shoulders. She was a head shorter than James, but her demeanor always made her seem taller. She was kind, but she knew how to make a joke. She was one of the top students in their class, next to Molly.
“Thanks, Shannon,” Scorpius said as the portrait swung forward to allow them in.
“No problem. By the way, those were some pretty cool fireworks. You were lucky grandmum didn’t see who set them off.”
“But I bet she can guess,” Molly laughed, collapsing in her favorite armchair near the fire. “After all, who would have easy access to my dad’s stuff?”
“James,” Scorpius shook his head in mock disapproval. “How could you? You should be ashamed of yourself, interrupting the Sorting like that.”
Everyone shared a brief laugh. “So, have you guys met the new teacher?” Shannon asked. “He looks pretty nice.”
“You mean nice kind or nice nice?” Molly laughed. “Yeah, he was in our compartment on the Hogwarts Express. It was kinda weird… he said something about some guy named Kaein, and fell asleep.”
“He likes to sleep, doesn’t he? Grandmum said he came here from America because of what’s happening over there. Did you hear?”
“Yeah,” James nodded, finally managing to collect the courage to speak. “Pretty scary, isn’t it? A new Dark Lord taking the place of Voldemort… dad’s been worried sick about it.”
“We should ask him about it,” Scorpius put in. “Our schedule says we have him first thing tomorrow morning.”
“Well, I don’t know about you guys, but I’m going to get some sleep,” Shannon yawned. “See you in the morning.”
James watched her disappear up the stairs into the girl’s dormitory. Molly smiled at him.
“You actually talked to her! I’m proud of you, James.”
“So that’s who James likes,” Albus murmured a little too loud for his own good. James turned his gaze on his little brother, who shrank back immediately. “I won’t tell dad or mum, I promise!”
“Good. If they find out, you’ll be waking up stuck to the ceiling of the Great Hall, and I mean it,”
James growled. If his parents found out, it would only be a little while before the whole Weasley clan knew, and Uncle George would never let him rest about having a crush on the granddaughter of a professor.
“Let’s get some sleep,” Molly interrupted hastily, before James had time to continue his threats. “After all, we do have a big day tomorrow…”
James alone could not sleep, no matter how hard he tried. Five minutes after the boys had collapsed into bed they had all fallen asleep, exhausted from the mix of traveling and over-eating. James was usually the first to go, but for some reason, he felt like he was being watched by something that didn’t belong here. After nearly an hour of tossing and turning under the covers, which felt oddly hot and scratchy tonight, James muttered a curse and swung his legs over the bed, reaching under his mattress to find the item he always kept on hand.
The invisibility cloak flowed through James’ hands like water as he swung it about him, already heading for the door. Maybe a breath of fresh air would do him some good…
James’ trip to the grounds passed uneventfully, as he expected it would. He prided himself in not having been caught anywhere near as much as his father had been after hours, even if there was no longer a Mad-Eye Moody to see through the cloak.
The air on the grounds was crisp and cold; a soft breeze blew at the fringes of James’ cloak as he walked to his common nightly haunt at the base of an old willow tree overlooking the lake from the top of a hill. The sky was cloudless, and the full moon and stars shone brightly down on the lake, which calm water reflected a perfect picture of the night sky. Nothing save the wind’s mournful howl broke the silence of the night.
James leaned back against the knotted old tree, gazing at the lake. He had always loved coming here at this time of night, when it seemed he was the only thing living on the earth. Barely had the thought crossed his mind when a soft voice came from behind him.
“Beautiful night, isn’t it, James?”
James’ heart skipped a beat, and he froze in place, not daring to breath. Professor Blade was seated against the tree next to him, tired eyes closed, arms folded across his chest. The moon illuminated his face, highlighting the thin, white scar that crossed his eye. The man gave a lopsided smirk.
“An invisibility cloak doesn’t help you if the person looking for you is only listening. I can hear your heart beating, James. What are you afraid of?”
James swallowed nervously, and pulled the cloak off. Blade nodded his head contentedly.
“You’re afraid of me, aren’t you?” he asked. “You’re afraid I’m going to give you detention for being out of bounds past curfew, or tell your parents.”
“You aren’t?” James asked, the adrenaline from the initial shock of being discovered slowly fading away.
“No. I wanted to talk to you alone, away from the prying ears of others, a luxury I did not have on the Hogwarts Express. You’re very odd, James. Many of our kind never have anyone to call friend save ourselves. I wasn’t expecting you to be an exception.”
“Our kind?” James asked. “What are you talking about?”
Blade bit his lip for a moment before speaking. “I can’t tell you everything until I am sure you are who I think you are. Let’s just say that, if I am correct, which I usually am, you and I both are much different from the other students here. There are several others like us, but we remain out of sight, and out of mind until absolutely necessary. I must, as I said, confirm you are who I think you are. May I see your wand?”
James fished around in the pocket of his bed robe for a moment, turning over the black wand to Blade without a second thought. Blade gave it back to him almost immediately.
“You don’t feel any real attachment to it, do you? You handed it over too quickly for that. It’s never really worked for you either, has it?”
James shrugged. “I suppose that could be one reason why everyone in my year is better than me at magic. I always thought I just wasn’t as good.”
Blade laughed out loud at this. “Not as good? You? You may have figured this out already, but I can do things most wizards can’t. One of my talents is detecting the flow of magic, which surrounds wizards and witches at all times. That’s what separates us from Muggles. You have the thickest river of magic flowing around you I have ever felt. You simply do not have the proper instrument to channel that stream.”
Blade drew another wand from the pocket of his robes, but it was unlike any wand James had ever seen. It was nearly twice the length of his old wand, and black as the night sky above him. Silver runes spiraled from its base, shimmering slightly in the moonlight. It may only have been James’ imagination, but it seemed to pulse with some inner light, growing and fading with the beating of his heart. He took the wand from Professor Blade’s hands, almost trembling with anticipation.
Almost at once, the silver runes brightened, and, as James gave an experimental flick of his wrist, a jet of silvery light erupted from the end of the wand, soaring into the sky. Blade smiled again, tilting his head upward to follow the path of the silver light. It continued upward for what seemed like forever, until it finally vanished into the stars.
“Excellent,” he murmured. “Kaein will be very interested in this.”
“Who is Kaein?” James asked. “You said that name on the Hogwarts Express, too.”
“I can’t tell you anything more until I receive permission from my elders. I came here to find out about you on a hunch, so the rest of our kind doesn’t know where I am. Go back to bed and get some rest, James. I’ll speak with you in the morning.”
Blade of Darkness by Lord of Night
Chapter Notes: I do not own Harry Potter, and I have changed Scorpius' age to be the same as James', in case you didn't see the story notes.
Chapter Endnotes: The next chapter should have more action... hold on for me, please! Also, please review if you have the time.