"Romora, could you please hurry up, our carriage is here!"

It was Sunday afternoon, and Eleazar was finishing up packing up their belongings. After his long day at work, he had told Romora to pack everything she didn't want accidentally forgotten. So she went into her room to search, but just ended up staring at the wall in thought.

I can do this. I've been practicing all summer. I'm going to be fine.

As Romora chanted these words, her hair and eye color were changing rapidly.

"Romora, must I call you again?" Eleazar called, making her sigh.

Romora looked around the room one last time, but suddenly stopped as she neared the exit.

She slowly walked over to her bedside cabinet, and pulled open the bottom drawer. Inside sat the most precious thing to Romora. The Magic Eye.

Her biological mothers necklace.

Romora had no clue how she came to possess it. She had it since the first memory in her head. And she had somehow remembered it as her mothers gift to her when she was a toddler.

So Romora had kept it safe, keen on holding onto the only thing she had to remember her mother.

She grabbed the necklace hastily, and slipped it over her head.

"Eleazar, did you remember to tell George what time we're departing?" Romora asked her foster father once she came out to the carriage.

"Yes, but I'm afraid he's late, as usual." Eleazar said, chuckling as he put the last bag on the carriage.

"He never could solve your cryptic letters in time." Romora laughed, remembering the previous time George was delayed.

He arrived an hour late, covered in Puffskein hair(and a stowaway that made a good present).

"Eleazar, you sent Fluffy to school, right?" Romora asked, suddenly remembering her baby Puffskein.

"Yes, I remember someone coming by the office today to pick her up. Let me tell you, Fluffy did not like being away from you." Eleazar said, putting his wand away.

"Can you honestly blame her? She's just a baby, and she doesn't have a mother." She told him, biting her lip.

"Much like when we found you. You were very uncomfortable around other people. Almost if you were scared someone would hurt you." Eleazar remembered, tossing some coins to the carriage driver.

But Romora wasn't listening as she looked at what was towing the carriage.

Dark gray skinned horses stood stiffly, with sharp shaped jaws connected to ears. Their long necks arched to their backs, where huge wins folded in. And their bones were visible, as if they hadn't eaten in a long time.

Thestrals.

How can I see them?!

Thestrals were not commonly a welcome sight. Romora breathed heavily as she remembered what she read about the previous night. Only unfortunate souls who have seen death can lay eyes on these magnificent creatures.

And Romora never remembered seeing death.

"Alright there, Romora?" Eleazar asked, but paled when he saw where she was staring.

"I've never seen death in all my life, Eleazar." Romora told him, breathing heavily.

"Well maybe you have. You said so yourself that you had no memories before you awoke in that field." He said, trying to reassure her.

"Are you implying that I saw death as a tiny toddler?" Romora asked incredulously, but got no answer as a pop was heard.

A plump man with black greased back hair and a beard appeared in front of them. He wore spectral framed glasses and a long light brown coat paired with a red bow tie. This man was George Osric.

"Oh, Eleazar, Romora!" He said in delight, breaking the previous conversation.

"George! Glad my rather cryptic description of our location did not thwart your finding us." Eleazar said as George walked up to them.

"I've apparated to more vaguely defined destinations than this." He chuckled as the adults shook hands.

"Though, I confess I may have miscalculated slightly on my first try. Gave quite the fright to some theater-goers in the West End."

Romora grinned at the man, chuckling softly with him.

"It's been much too long. When I received your owl, I must say I -" Eleazar started, but was soon interrupted.

"Best not speak here, Eleazar, hm?" George said cautiously, making Romora frown.

"Of course. Why don't we speak en route to Hogwarts? We have a start-of-term feast and a Sorting Ceremony to get to." Eleazar agreed after looking around.

"Wonderful. As long as young Romora here doesn't mind me tagging along." George asked, making a gesture with his fingers to show running.

"Of course, George." Romora smiled, making him chuckle.

"After you, Romora." Eleazar said, leading his foster daughter into the carriage.

She heard George say something about the castle, but couldn't catch it clearly. The door swung closed, and the driver whipped the reins to take off. Romora was finally going to Hogwarts.

They were soon soaring across the sky and through the clouds, and a conversation was soon resumed.

"Glad I caught you two before you left for Scotland." George said, making Eleazar chuckle.

"Just barely." He said, glancing at Romora.

"And may I ask, why is Romora traveling with you?" The man sitting in front of them asked.

"Because she's starting as a new student." Eleazar smiled, earning a confused look.

"New? I wasn't aware she wasn't already attending." George said, looking at the pink haired teen.

"Yes, George. I'm starting as a fifth year." Romora told him with a grin.

"How extraordinary." George replied, looking back to Eleazar for more information.

"It is, indeed. None of the faculty has ever heard of anyone being admitted to Hogwarts so late." The old man said, smiling proudly at his foster daughter.

"Nor have I." George said, looking more puzzled by the second.

"​​Of course, as the other fifth-years will have been honing the magical skills for four years now, I volunteered to get Romora up to speed before the first term begins." Eleazar assured, both of them now looking at their companion.

"Well, you couldn't have asked for a better mentor than your foster father. Fig is not only an exceptional teacher, he is a remarkably intuitive - and gifted - wizard." George grinned, but the professor just waved him off.

"George is surely prone to flattery. I daresay it's one of the reasons he's risen so far at the Ministry." Eleazar chuckled at Romora, earning one back.

After a moment, George pulled out a newspaper and showed it to the two.

"Have you seen this?" He asked with a serious expression.

It was the Daily Prophet, titled 'Ranrok's Goblin Rebellion: Truth? Or Gobbledegook?'. Romora frowned slightly, not having heard anything about this. But it wasn't like she ever read the news, so she wasn't surprised she wasn't aware.

"I have. Opinions differ as to how great a threat Ranrok really is." Eleazar said, his eyebrows furrowing.

Romora's eyes drifted out the window, looking into the clouds below them. Her eyes widened when she thought she saw a glimpse of something. But she just took it as a trick of the light, turning back to the conversation with a puzzled face.

"Although I've yet to convince my colleagues at the Ministry. I believe he is a significant threat." George warned, then hesitated to continue as he folded up the newspaper.

"And it was your wife, Eleazar, who alerted me to his activities months ago."

This caused both Eleazar and Romora to look at him with shocked expressions.

"Miriam?" The young teen croaked out, glancing at her foster father.

"She wrote to me about Ranrok before she died - wondering what the Ministry knew about his activities." George sighed as Eleazar looked down in thought.

"Before I could respond, I received this. It was the last thing she sent me. Eleazar." He continued, pulling out a thin cylinder container with a weird symbol on it.

One that looked extremely familiar to Romora.

"It came via her owl - but with no correspondence. I can only assume -" George said quietly, handing the container over.

"-that she had to get rid of it quickly to keep it safe." Eleazar finished, taking it with a puzzled expression mirroring his fister daughters.

"Presumably from Ranrok."

Romora looked to George, then back to the container.

"I cannot open it. Whatever magic protects this is powerful indeed." He said sadly as Eleazar turned the container around to examine it.

"It looks like Goblin metal." The old man concluded, looking over to the pink haired teen.

But Romora was already staring at it with wide eyes.

"That symbol-"

"What's that glow?" She asked, pointing to the symbol.

It shined with a faint blue, flickering softly.

"I don't see a glow." Eleazar said with a frown as he looked back at it.

"Nor do I." Said George in a concerned tone looking over to Romora.

Her foster father handed her the container, and she put her full attention to it. As she softly held it in her hand, she saw the symbol glow brighter. Then it quickly flashed, before the glow traveled along the opening. The container had opened.

Inside, was a key, with the same swirled symbol on the end.

"Merlin's beard! How did you - ?" George exclaimed as Romora went to touch the key.

"Wait. We do not know what-" Eleazar started as he took the container back.

All of a sudden, a giant jaw chomped George's half of the carriage, making the two scream in shock.

A gray dragon, wearing red glowing armor, had eaten their friend.

It slowly flew backwards a bit as Romora and Eleazar quickly held tightly onto their seats. The teens face was horror stricken as she looked back to see the driver and Thestrals in a panic. She looked back in fright as the dragon prepared to fire, and Eleazar knew they were going to be dead if they didn't jump.

"Jump!" He yelled and grabbed his foster daughter's hand.

They leaped from the carriage, spinning around frantically. As the fire hit it, debris flew everywhere. And Romora cried out as a weel hit her left hip.

"The key!" Eleazar yelled, as it flew out of the container.

He grabbed Romora's hand and summoned the key to his hand.

And with a pop, they were apparated away by the key.