A Matter of Destiny - Cats Can't Talk... Can They (1/?)
Chapter 1
It was late, far later than was safe to be out in Sunnydale and Willow Rosenberg had lived above the Hellmouth long enough to know better. But she’d also been best friends with the slayer long enough to know how to defend herself from a pathetic little vampire attack should one surface, which in Sunnydale was always a possibility. Although Willow was carefully tuned to the activities around her, so much so that every movement caused her to jump; she paid no attention to the tabby that had been following her since she left the school.
Willow had been busy completing her lesson plans for the computer class she’d been teaching ever since their teacher had been murdered by the soulless Angelus. Okay, so maybe she hadn’t spent the entire evening writing lesson plans. Instead she’d spent her time searching through Giles’ books for anything about witchcraft and later, trying with limited success to float her pencil across the room. The most she’d managed to do was send a fly buzzing across the room like a grenade, and she wasn’t even sure she’d done that.
A block before Willow’s house the cat made it’s move. No longer content to simply follow at a distance it let out a pathetic ‘mew’ forcing Willow’s attention to the little creature. She started at the sound but when she realised that it was just a cat she relaxed. Willow had always liked animals, at least the cute fuzzy kinds like dogs and cats, some of the others wigged her out though, like frogs and snakes. The cat happily sidled up to Willow when she called it and nuzzled against her hand.
After a few minutes of gently rubbing the cat’s ears Willow boldly picked the creature up and that was when it happened. She felt like her body was being ripped apart and it was all she could do to cling to the furry creature in her arms. Willow had no idea what was happening, she was used to strange things happening in Sunnydale though so she wasn’t overly scared. Perhaps given what she knew about the things lurking around Sunnydale and in the depths of the Earth she should have been afraid but she wasn’t, just curious. Admittedly though, she would have much preferred a garden variety vampire as she always knew what to expect with those. At least vampires never seemed to suck her through tiny invisible portals, mostly they just went all bumpy and growled with their fangs showing.
At first the thoughts of vampires running through her brain distracted Willow from noticing her new surroundings. Finally looking around herself Willow noticed the cat sitting patiently next to her on the ground. The next thing she noticed was that they seemed to be in some sort of alley but it didn’t look anything like the ones she was used to seeing at home, actually it looked like something out of the 1800’s and for a minute Willow wondered if she’d somehow managed to go back in time. The cat seemed to know what she was thinking and gave her a look that said ‘you can’t be serious?’, Willow shook her head, of course she couldn’t be serious, then again cats couldn’t really know what you were thinking could they?
But a block later the cat was still following her and not only was it following her it was getting closer. And it kept looking at her like she was crazy, like there was something it knew that she didn’t. Did she have something on her face that she didn’t know about?
The cat was right behind her when she got to her doorstep and slipped into the house before she had a chance to stop it. When she grabbed it to throw it back outside she felt a strange pull somewhere around her navel that was completely vomit inducing. Somehow she managed to keep her lunch down as her entryway disappeared from around her and everything faded to black for a few moments before she felt herself reappear somewhere completely different with the cat still in her arms. Instinctively she knew that the cat had something to do with it, though she logically knew that wasn’t really possible.
She was still trying to get her footing when the cat wriggled out of her arms. When the cat changed into a stern looking older lady in a black robe with her gray hair tied in a bun, Willow screamed. The sound echoed through the empty hallway. Willow was accustomed to strange things happening, but animals did not normally turn into people in front of her, even in Sunnydale. Of course looking around her Willow was not convinced she was actually in Sunnydale anymore. The hallway she was in looked like something out of the middle ages with a little renaissance thrown in for good measure. The entire structure seemed to be constructed from giant stone blocks. The rug that lined the entire length of the hallway was a deep red with gold tassels and embroidery.
“You are probably wondering what you are doing here and who I am” The strange woman asked, her voice slightly friendlier than Willow would have expected given her appearance.
“Well that, and where are we?” Willow asked with more sarcasm than she had intended.
“Ah, of course Miss Rosenberg, I will get to that. Can we walk while I explain this? I must get you to Albus”
“Of course” Willow agreed. Her heart rate had returned to somewhere with the normal range and she was pretty sure that she was in no immediate danger from the woman next to her, she might as well relax a little. She just hoped that Albus posed as little threat as the strange woman who still hadn’t identified herself.
“I am Professor McGonagall and this is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I think any further explanation about why you are here should come from the headmaster” she’d been abducted to a school? It sounded a little ridiculous when you said it out loud to be honest, but that is what seemed to have happened.
“The headmaster?” Willow asked wondering if the headmaster was in some way related to this Albus fellow “Are we in England?” she added, her mind finally registering the unique accent and unnecessary formality of her abductor’s speech.
“Yes, we are. Very observant Miss Rosenberg” Professor McGonagall’s tone left Willow wondering whether the comment was a compliment or an insult.
“Who is this Albus that you’re taking me to?” Willow asked as she was bustled down another hallway and then up a flight of stairs.
Professor McGonagall gave her a strange look for a moment before answering her question “Professor Albus Dumbledore” she explained putting an emphasis on the Professor “He is the headmaster of Hogwarts. He will explain everything.” McGonagall stopped at that moment and Willow who was too busy examining their surroundings almost ran straight into her. The older woman mumbled something that sounded a lot like “toffee apple” and suddenly the gargoyle they were standing in front of sprang to life and moved to reveal a moving spiral staircase. The woman gestured for Willow to follow her upstairs, which she did, against her better judgement. The staircase was narrow and lit by torches and the moment they were both on the staircase the gargoyle moved back into place effectively blocking them inside.
Professor McGonagall rapped gently on the door at the top of the stairs, before ushering Willow inside without waiting for a response. The room was far bigger than Willow expected given the narrow staircase and far more beautiful. She wondered briefly if all of England was like this, because if it was she wasn’t sure how Giles had ever managed to leave.
There were piles of unusual objects stored in cabinets and on shelves around the office. The desk in the centre was a beautiful mahogany that Willow just knew was an antique, the chair behind it looked more like a throne and was home to an ancient looking man in turquoise robes, his white hair hung loose down his back and melded with the long beard handing at his front.
“Ah, Miss Rosenberg I presume?”
“Yes, sir, Professor Dumbledore. Willow Rosenberg, well most people just call me Willow, or Wills, or Cordelia just calls me weird. But I’m kind of used to that now, she has been doing it since we were four, because Sunnydale isn’t that big and we went to preschool together and then elementary and junior high and now high school. But I’m definitely not going to college with her. There is no way she will ever get into Harvard or anything, unless her parents buy her way in, but people keep saying I’m smart enough to do it. Oh god... I’m babbling aren’t I?” Willow flushed a colour that resembled her fiery red hair and clamper her mouth shut.
“It is quite alright Miss Rosenberg” the headmaster dismissed with a slight chuckle “I am sure it has been quite an unnerving afternoon. I suppose it is a rather rare occurrence for one such as yourself to be abducted by a tabby cat who later turns into a human having transported you halfway across the globe in mere seconds. And I always find apparition to be quite an unsettling experience myself” Dumbledore admitted with a twinkle in his eye as he gestured for Willow to take a seat opposite his desk.
“Apparition?” Willow wondered aloud.
“Ah yes, the ability to move from one place to another almost instantly using only the power of your mind. Very handy, but awfully unpleasant in my opinion”
“Albus” McGonagall warned from next to Willow “Please get to the point”
“Of course my dear Minerva, we mustn’t keep Miss Rosenberg here any longer than necessary.” Dumbledore turned back to Willow “I presume that Professor McGonagall explained where we are?” Willow nodded “So you now know that not everything in this world is as it seems and some things are far less fantastical than you have been led to believe. But you were already aware of that I believe. You live in Sunnydale, above the Hellmouth I believe, and you have recently become close friends with the Slayer. I believe you also know an old friend of mine, a Mr Rupert Giles?”
“You know Giles?” Willow was shocked, she knew England was much smaller than America but she thought it was big enough that not everyone would know everyone else.
“Oh yes, he was a student here not so long ago. He has since turned his back on the magical world and dedicated himself to academics and the training of Slayer’s. A most admirable job, though many have criticised his decision. His family have removed him from the family tree I believe” Albus seemed amused rather than sad for the librarian and Willow wondered if she was missing something.
“I am getting off track again though. I would like to offer you a place here at Hogwarts. Although it is nearly the summer break we would like for you to begin the new school year as a sixth year with the other students of your age. That would mean that you will need to stay here for the summer and catch up on what you have missed. It would mean a lot of work on your part but several teachers including myself and Professor McGonagall have already agreed to tutor you, along with one of the brightest students in your class. A Miss Tara Maclay, she is in Ravenclaw house and I trust she will be able to explain how things work here in a way that I cannot grasp.”
“You want me to come to school here? Why me? I’m not magical, sure I can float a pencil with my mind but I’m sure lots of people can do that. What about my parents and my friends? And I don’t have any of my stuff here.” Willow’s brain was sent into overdrive by the huge amount of information “How will I ever catch up on five years’ worth of lessons in one summer?”
“Not to worry Miss Rosenberg, all of that has been taken care of. Your parents and friends will be none the wiser to your disappearance. They believe that you have been accepted to a special summer course and then boarding school, Professor McGonagall saw to that while you were at school today. She also packed all your things for you and had them transported here, once you have been sorted they will be moved to your room. And I assure you that you are in fact very magical, I am not sure why you were overlooked for enrolment when you were 11 but your importance to our world has just become apparent”
“Sorting?” Willow was so overwhelmed, twenty four hours ago her biggest problem was vampires, it was strange to think there was something crazier than vampires out there. She’d been abducted by a cat who was actually a teacher on her way home from school and told that she was actually a witch who was incredibly important somehow to the wizarding community. Oh and she had travelled halfway across the word in a few seconds and then been offered a place at a wizard’s boarding school in what appeared to be a castle. Even for her it was a strange day.
“Why, but of course. Sorting. You must be sorted into one of the four Hogwarts houses before anything else can happen. I presume you have made your decision about my offer?”
“I would be crazy to say no wouldn’t I?” The headmaster nodded happily “Okay, then I guess I’m staying”
“Ah, what wonderful news. May I have the sorting hat Minerva?” Dumbledore turned towards his deputy and she sprang to her feet faster than Willow would have expected of someone of her age. Willow was surprised when the woman handed her the hat and she wondered for a moment what she was supposed to do with it.
“You just have to put it on your head. The hat will know where your heart lies” Dumbledore explained. Well, okay, the day couldn’t get much stranger than it already was, having a hat tell her who she was supposed to be couldn’t be any weirder.
The hat was soft as she placed it over her fiery red hair, she wondered how many years the same hat had been used. She wondered what kind of strange school let a hat decide important matters. She was just deciding it was probably no worse than the method used in elementary school to decide teams and such by drawing names from a hat, when suddenly there was a voice in her mind.
“Hmm, an interesting decision. You would do well in Gryffindor I believe, a most fiery personality and I can sense a lot of courage in you. But perhaps you would be better off in Ravenclaw, your mind is very sharp. I think it will be... RAVENCLAW” the last word boomed loudly through the office and reverberated back off the walls. The three were silent, the hat’s decision echoing between them.
“Well that is most convenient” It was Dumbledore who spoke first “Miss Maclay is also a Ravenclaw student. The two of you will share quarters, along with a Miss Lovegood I believe. Thought that will be up to Professor Flitwick, your head of house” Dumbledore seemed pleased. Professor McGonagall will escort you to The Ravenclaw entrance where you will meet Professor Flitwick. I will have someone escort you to Diagon Alley tomorrow to get you a wand and whatever else you may need. You will also need to choose your OWL subjects at some point, I will have Miss Maclay explain the different subjects to you so you can make a decision and begin your lessons.”
It seemed at that moment that Willow had been dismissed from the office. A theory which was confirmed when Professor McGonagall got to her feet and motioned for Willow to follow. And just like that she was a student at a new school, in another country with the memories of her family and friends altered to believe she was merely at a boarding school. How little they really knew. What a day it had been, her entire life had been turned upside down in one afternoon. Maybe she should have been scared by what had happened and what she had just found out but instead she was excited by all the new things she was about to learn.
“Miss Rosenberg, if you will come with me, I will take you to Professor Flitwick” Willow sucked in a deep breath as she crossed the threshold and found herself back on the tiny spiral staircase, from this point onwards everything would be different.
Prologue