Broken Star

Chapter 2: Beit HaChachamim (House of the Wise)

Headmaster Dippet and Professor Dumbledore led Esther away from the Entrance Hall, down a corridor to the right. They'd continued for several minutes and passed through many corridors before they stopped at a stone gargoyle.

"Aurora," said Professor Dippet. At this, the stone gargoyle leapt aside, revealing a moving spiral staircase. Professor Dumbledore and the Headmaster stepped onto it, and Esther followed. The staircase took them upwards, and Professor Dippet informed Esther that they were going to his office. After a few moments, Esther saw an oak door with a brass knocker in the shape of a griffin. The Headmaster stepped off of the moving staircase, opened the door and motioned for Esther to enter.

Esther found herself in a large, circular room. On one side, there was a very large, claw-footed desk, on which there were a few small stacks of parchment, some quills, and an inkwell. There were portraits of former Headmasters and Headmistresses covering the walls, all of whom were sleeping. One of the portraits was even emitting very loud snores. And in the center of the room, there was a large, tattered old hat, placed upon a stool.

The Headmaster and Professor Dumbledore entered the office behind her and closed the door.

Esther looked up at them, waiting for them to tell her what to do.

"This is the Hogwarts Sorting Hat," said Professor Dumbledore, "it will sort you into one of the four Hogwarts houses: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, or Slytherin."

He smiled at her amiably, picked up the hat, and gestured that she should sit on the stool. Esther sat, and Professor Dumbledore placed the hat on her head. After a moment, she heard a small voice speaking in her ear.

"Now, let's see... hard-working... very loyal and extremely protective of those close to you, but you have an inhibition in trusting people that removes Hufflepuff as an option..."

Esther frowned slightly. How was she supposed to trust people when you never knew who was one of Grindelwald's supporters or who was--

Her thoughts were cut off when the voice spoke again. "Yes, a lack of trust is natural enough after all you've gone through; you've faced so much already, and you have come through your trials admirably... However, your most outstanding trait is your intelligence."

'The languages and all the defenses I know,' she thought.

"You have much knowledge already, yes, but that's not all of it... you're very wise for someone so young; you know many things that no book can teach. Things that, in fact, many respected witches and wizards have yet to learn. You belong in RAVENCLAW!"

The hat was pulled off of her head, and she looked up to see the two men smiling benignly at her.

"Very well," said Professor Dippet, "I will escort you to the Great Hall while Professor Dumbledore goes and greets the first years."

Professor Dumbledore smiled once more at Esther before picking up the stool and hat and leaving the room.

"Come along," said Professor Dippet, leading Esther out of the room. He guided her down the spiral staircase and through the same corridors they had traveled a few minutes before.

"As a Ravenclaw," said the Headmaster as they walked, "your Head of House is Professor Flitwick, who is also the Charms professor."

Esther nodded in reply.

"Ah, here we are," remarked the Headmaster as they reached the Great Hall.

The Hall was almost completely filled with chattering students, except for a section at the end of each of the four long tables, where there were place settings, but no students. There were no more people entering the Hall, and it seemed as if everyone had already settled into their respective places. Remembering that they had been taken in a different direction than the rest of the students, Esther assumed that the empty seats were waiting to be filled by the yet-to-arrive first years.

"That is the Ravenclaw table," Dippet said, pointing to the middle of the room, "and now I must join the staff table. Welcome to Hogwarts, Miss Rothberg."

The headmaster walked up to the staff table, leaving Esther standing in the middle of the Great Hall, wondering where she would sit at the table and join her new house-mates. That is, she was wondering until she saw Nicole flagging her down from her spot near the end of the table. Esther walked over to her and sat down in the open spot that Nicole had saved.

"So, you are a Ravenclaw!" Nicole greeted her.

Esther smiled. "So it appears."

A moment later, the large doors to the Great Hall, which had been closed again after Esther and Professor Dippet entered, were opened, and a group of wet and scared-looking first years entered. They slowly walked to the front of the Great Hall, and many looked up and stared at the ceiling as they did so.

Wondering what they were staring at, Esther glanced up as well and saw that there appeared to be no ceiling, just the open sky and the elements. The rain clouds seemed to have passed, and she had a perfect view of the stars shining in the night sky. She knew the ceiling must have been enchanted but was impressed none the less.

She took her eyes off of the ceiling and looked at the first years again. The group was now standing a few yards from the staff table, and their eyes, which had previously been staring at the enchanted ceiling, were now fixed on the Sorting Hat. Everyone in the Hall, not only the first years, was staring at the hat, when a tear near the brim opened, and the hat started to sing.

You may think I'm old and ragged,

That my seams need a good mend,

But no other hat you'll ever wear

Can give the advice I lend.

I'll tell which house is fit for you,

Which of the Founders Four,

For I can see inside your head

And tell which one you're suited for.

Are you noble and brave of heart?

Gryffindor is the house for you.

Or are you the trusting and loyal sort?

Then a Hufflepuff through and through.

If you are wise and quick to learn,

In Ravenclaw you belong.

However, if you are sly and cunning,

Slytherin won't steer you wrong.

One by one, come have a seat

And try me on for size;

I'll tell you why and where to go

The Sorting Hat never lies!

There was polite applause, and the hat bowed in response. Professor Dumbledore, who was standing next to the hat, cleared his throat.

"When your name is called, you will come forward, sit on the stool, and put on the hat to be sorted." He paused to smile encouragingly at the frightened-looking group of first years and then called out, "Abera, Joel."

At this, a small, fair-haired boy stepped out of the crowd of first years. He walked apprehensively forward and sat down as directed on the stool. After a few moments, the hat declared him a Hufflepuff, amidst the clapping of the boy's new housemates.

The next name called was "Ashton, Kerry," a name which belonged to a girl with extremely curly red hair. To the excitement of Esther's own house, the girl became the first Ravenclaw from the new batch of first years. Kerry was welcomed heartily at the other end of the table as another name was called.

After the last student was sorted, Professor Dippet stood and clapped his hands; piles of food suddenly appeared on the empty tables. Everyone immediately began dishing large helpings of the different dishes onto their plates.

Nicole ate a few bites before she turned to Esther to introduce her to the surrounding girls.

"This is Sarah Houghton, Natalie Osten, and Brenna Chamlee," she said, pointing out each girl in turn. "They are the other fourth year Ravenclaw girls. This is Esther Rothberg, the new student."

The three girls smiled warmly at Esther.

"Where are you from?" asked Brenna curiously.

"Beauxbatons," said Esther, "but I'm originally from Germany. I lived there until I was ten."

"Germany?" said Natalie. She paused, and looked thoughtful. "My father works for the Ministry of Magic, in the office of International Magical Cooperation. He works with officials from the German Ministry on a fairly regular basis, and from the little he's told me, things are getting pretty bad there. Not only is the Ministry struggling with keeping Grindelwald in check, but they've also come across a problem dealing with an increase of Muggle violence. He says German Muggles are getting ready to fight their own war." There was another pause. "Is that why your family moved?"

Esther said nothing in reply, only looked down at her plate and poked at her food. The other four girls exchanged furtive glances. There was a tense silence for a short time before Sarah broke in with a different subject.

"So, Nicole, any ideas on who is going to try out for the open positions on the house team this year?"

With the conversation now focused on Quidditch, Esther looked up from her plate and contentedly followed the dialogue, making occasional comments here and there. From Quidditch, the topic changed to classes and teachers and as the group finished eating their desert, they were discussing some of the more interesting parts of the castle.

"Some rooms in the castle shift from place to place," said Sarah. "Once in first year, I got lost trying to find my way back to our dormitories from Transfiguration. I wandered all over the castle, and at one point I ended up in a room near the kitchens, which I had never seen before. It was filled with Muggle pocket-watches, all of which were broken. It was very odd, and I've never seen that room again."

"And I once stumbled across a room with some strange language written all over the walls," volunteered Brenna. "It disappeared, so to speak, just like the pocket-watch room."

"Looks like the feast is over," commented Natalie as the deserts disappeared.

"Wait until you see our common room, Esther; it's wonderful!" Nicole told her.

Esther stood and followed the Ravenclaw prefects out of the Great Hall, walking along with her new dorm-mates. She was led through an assortment of long corridors, up three staircases (one of which had a trick step they were advised to watch out for), and past countless doors before the group stopped. They were standing in front of a large, moving painting, much like many others that decorated the halls of the school.

The painting contained a young but somewhat tired looking man, who wore 18th century clothing and was seated at a very old-fashioned looking desk. At the moment, he was leaning forward, quickly writing something on one of the many pieces of parchment that were scattered across his desk. He looked up, and smiled upon seeing the group.

"Password?"

The prefect who had been guiding the group turned around to face them.

"This is Renée, more commonly known as The Poet. He guards the entrance to our common room." She turned back to the painting. "'The unexamined life is not worth living,'" she said.

The painting swung away from the wall, revealing only the solid stone wall it had been covering. A moment later, a portion of the wall shifted, revealing a doorway. The prefect stepped through and everyone else followed. When the last person in the group stepped through the doorway, it was sealed off again.

"The Poet is very partial to using quotes from Muggle philosophers and authors as passwords. Ravenclaw is the only house that can boast that no one from another house has ever been able to discover its dormitories, and that is largely due to him. Anyone outside our house who comes across his picture will only end up getting into long, drawn out, and mostly one-sided philosophical discussions. He sometimes lapses and does that with Ravenclaws, but all you have to do is interrupt him and say the password, and he'll let you in."

The prefect paused in order to let the group's attention shift to their surroundings. Esther looked around and found she was standing in a rather large room. The wall she was facing held a large fireplace, in which a fire was burning, and doorways on either side. All of the other walls, including the one by the entrance, seemed to be giant bookshelves. There were also a couple of ornately carved dark wooden tables, several chairs, and one small couch covered in dark blue velvet.

"This is the Ravenclaw common room," she began again, "and our own personal library. The Hogwarts library has many books, but most of them are for reference and magical theory, and not many are useful in stimulating new thoughts and ideas. That's what these books are for. They are mainly philosophy and literature, by both muggle and wizard authors. Rowena Ravenclaw began our collection herself, with this copy of Beowulf, which is the oldest book in the school."

The prefect paused and pulled an ancient leather-bound book from the wall. She examined it for a moment before resuming her speech.

"It's also the oldest copy of that book in existence. The other original manuscripts were destroyed in the 16th century. Since Rowena Ravenclaw's time, the collection has grown considerably, with new additions from Ravenclaw students each year. Since the founding, every student who has passed through this house has donated at least one book. Before you graduate, each of you will have done so also." She paused again and smiled.

"And I believe that covers what you need to know. There are only a few things left to tell. To exit the common room, all you need to do is pull on the copy of Paradise Lost on the wall behind you, and the doorway will open. The girls' dormitories are through the doorway to the left of the fireplace, and the boys' are to the right."

With that, the prefect walked through the doorway to the left of the fireplace, apparently to her own dorm. All of the first years, most of whom looked like they were going to fall asleep standing, immediately followed suit, as did many of the older students. Esther and Nicole stayed behind. Esther was inspecting some of the books on the shelves, and Nicole was watching Esther, waiting for a reaction.

"Isn't it wonderful?" Nicole asked after a moment.

"Yes," said Esther, turning around to face her, "It is perfect. It's one of my favorite places already."

Nicole smiled. "That's good."

Esther nodded. "You don't have to wait out here for me," she said after a moment. "I'll be in the dormitory in a few minutes."

"Alright." Nicole looked at Esther, contemplating something, but after a minute, she shook her head slightly and walked out of the room.

Esther turned back to the bookshelves. She felt extremely tired, and the feast she had just eaten made her even sleepier, but she didn't know if she was going to have a very good night's sleep. In the likely chance that she'd wake up in the middle of the night from her recurring nightmare, she needed something to keep her mind occupied until she could ease herself back to sleep.

After examining the books, Esther pulled To the Lighthouse from the shelves and walked through the doorway to the left of the fireplace. The doorway opened up into a stairwell, which curved broadly to the left and was wide enough for two people to walk through side by side. Near the base of the staircase, there was a door with a sign that read 'first-years.'

Continuing up the stairs, Esther passed a few more doors before coming to a door on her right which was designated as the fourth-year dorms. She opened the door and walked into a moderately sized circular room. The room held five four-poster beds, each of which had deep blue hangings and bedspreads. To the left of each bed was a small dresser, made out of the same dark wood as the furniture in the common room. Looking around, she saw that her trunk had been placed in front of the bed nearest to the door.

Nicole, Sarah, Natalie, and Brenna were already situated and settling down in their respective beds. They had been talking, but had stopped when the door opened and Esther came in.

"Esther," said Nicole, "did you find what you were looking for?"

"Yes," said Esther, holding up To the Lighthouse, "I was just looking for a good book. I usually like to read before I go to sleep."

"I don't see how you're awake enough to read that right now," yawned Sarah. "I'm completely exhausted."

"Force of habit," Esther shrugged.

The girls all finished settling in and then crawled into their beds, extremely tired. The hangings around all five beds were pulled shut, and everyone except for Esther dropped immediately off to sleep. Esther read by the light of her wand for about ten minutes before it became too much of an effort to keep her eyes open. Reaching through the curtains, Esther placed her wand and the book on top of her dresser, then lay down and placed her head on the very comfortable pillow.

Before completely drifting off, she whispered almost inaudibly: "Sh'ma y'israel adonai elohaynu adonai ekhad."