The Utopian Basilisks

Utopian Basilisks

Prologue:

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is one of if not the finest school for young wizards in Europe. Ever since the original four founders built the vast castle, it has produced many of the most talented and gifted wizards this world has to offer. Harry Potter, the boy credited with the fame of bringing down the evil Lord Voldemort attended that school. Ever since then, the already grand reputation has grown larger (if that were indeed possible.)

Of course, Harry was not the only student to attend Hogwarts, nor was he in any way always the focus of attention. Harry wasn't the incredible young boy those Muggle books made him out to be (although every wizard will admit, he was a very special boy). Of course, no one can be expected to be perfect and for the most part Miss J.K. Rowling was right on in her details of the people who attended Hogwarts and what went on there. Harry risked his life many times to protect his friends and did indeed have several unfortunate run ins with the Dark Lord... he also escaped victorious all those times too, there's no dark secret about that either.

However, what you were never told were some of the more... ungraceful details to his story. Hogwarts did not have four houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. While these were in fact the oldest of the five houses, during Harry's first year Dumbledore gave permission for the creation of a fifth house. How this happened is a long story involving several students who all had one thing in common: they were perceived as outcasts in their houses. Why their tale was never recognized no one knows... but whatever the reason, it happened, no denying that. You just never read about it...

It began during Harry's first year at Hogwarts. This was no doubt quite the eventful year for Harry, but what he didn't know was the entire mystery behind the Philosopher's Stone wasn't the only event taking place....

* * *

Chapter One: The Journey to Hogwarts

Janine ran to catch up with Morgan, her older sister. She was struggling against the bulk of her luggage, and her owl's cage swung precariously on top from one side to the next. Janine couldn't keep up with Morgan's long strides, let alone with her heavy load and in the packed station. Morgan's brown hair bobbed somewhere just ahead.

"Morgan, wait up!" Janine hissed, although she knew where she was going already. Morgan slowed down long enough to tell Janine to hurry up, then cast yet another glance around the busy train station.

Morgan aimed her luggage rack at the barrier between Muggle London and King's Cross station, where the Hogwarts Express would take them to Hogwarts. Morgan waited for Janine to cross, then pulled her luggage onto the train and into an empty compartment. When Janine poked her head in and began putting her luggage away, Morgan groaned.

"The rest are full," said Janine. Morgan knew better then to believe that. However, she moved away to give her sister room.

"What's Hogwarts like?" Janine asked.

"Fascinating," Morgan replied, though not too terribly enthusiastically.

"Oh, I can't wait! I get to learn spells, and Transfiguration, and Astronomy, Arithmancy, divination . . ."

"You may have read my books but you didn't understand a word in them. You won't get those subjects until a few years," Morgan interrupted.

"I still think they're fascinating and wonderful!" Janine exclaimed. Morgan rolled her eyes and watched outside as the crowd gradually began to thicken. All of the other students at Hogwarts, Morgan thought. Excited first years and bored seventh years. As a seventh year herself, Morgan had found that Hogwarts had since worn away its charm. Her first year sister didn't know what she was getting into.

"Do you have your ticket?" Morgan cut into Janine's thoughts of acing all of her classes.

"Oh no, I forgot it at home!" Janine cried. Morgan heaved a heavy sigh, told Janine to stay there, and left the train to buy her sister another ticket. Morgan stood in line with the other students who had apparently forgotten their tickets as well. She recognized some of the wizards and witches as her own friends, but many others were new and looking very frightened indeed.

"Must be first years," Morgan thought. She bought the ticket and sighed at the dwindling money sack; she wouldn't have much to spend at Hogsmeade that year, especially with having to buy Janine's school supplies as well.

Suddenly. Morgan saw a face in the crowd that made her blood run cold; Cornelius Fudge, the Minister for Magic. "What could he possibly be doing here?" Morgan thought. Fudge looked right at her, and Morgan ducked behind some other students.

"Morgan!" Fudge called. Morgan made a mad dash for the train. The whistle was already blowing. Fudge grabbed Morgan by the shoulder. "There you are. We needed to see you, as it concerns..."

"I know, I know," Morgan interrupted.

"Blowing people up is a serious underage wizarding crime. Luckily they've all been taken care of and Muggles at that. I should have thought you knew better," Fudge continued.

Morgan simply braced herself for the long lecture she knew was coming. She'd been through it all before. "They made me mad," Morgan replied crossly.

"That gives you no excuse!"

"All aboard!" the conductor yelled.

"Please, I have to go!" Morgan pleaded impatiently. "I can't miss the train!"

"Very well then, we're letting you off with a warning. You're too good of a wizard to lose over a dumb mistake, Morgan."

"I know, I know, now can I go?" Morgan asked impatiently. Fudge stepped aside and Morgan dashed up the steps and onto the train, trying to ignore the faces staring at her out the windows and the snickers that followed her down the hall. The train gave a lurch and was soon on its way down the tracks.

Morgan opened the compartment and slumped into her seat. "Did they find out about the incident?" Janine asked, her face two feet away from Morgan's.

"Yeah, unfortunately. Just another warning," Morgan said, shrugging the whole deal off as if it weren't important. Morgan pushed her sister back and closed her eyes. Things had not been going well that year. In fact, they hadn't been going well her whole life.

Morgan's parents had been killed when she was seven, and little Janine just one. A lady named Tomeh Nation had adopted them. Tomeh had never been married, never had any kids, and didn't speak English either. The little old lady had been happy to take them in. "If it hadn't been a mistake," Morgan shuddered.

It had been many long years, and Tomeh had grown old and frail. Morgan had since tried to keep them all alive on Tomeh's retirement pay. The old lady sat in her chair all day and knitted or sewed. Sometimes she would simply sit with her mouth hanging wide open. Luckily, Tomeh had been a witch and through Hogwarts; Dumbledore had helped her through since no one else understood a word she said.

On occasion, Morgan could get her to understand something, if she yelled loud enough. Like when they went to Diagon Alley every year. Something would come alive and shine in the old lady's eyes; maybe living in the Muggle world had killed something inside of her. Morgan shrugged off the feeling. Tomeh was just getting old.

She'd nearly starved them all to get enough money to get school supplies; the brooms and owls were Morgan's gift to Janine and herself from the money she earned at odd jobs during the summer months at home.

So things weren't exactly great, Morgan admitted. However, she knew wizarding families who had things much worse. Morgan's owl, Eclipse, hooted happily in its cage. It rustled its black plumage, surprising for an owl as most were brown, grey, or white. Only Eclipse's deep yellow eyes shone from its shadowy figure.

On the other hand, Janine's owl continued to pace its cage, unsettled and just as excited as Janine. "I hope you remembered your wand," Morgan said nastily.

"It's there. I double-checked and triple-checked!" Janine said from behind the cover of a large, leather-bound book. A light knock on the door made them both jump. Morgan slid it open. A girl was standing outside, her luggage trailing behind her.

"Please, is there any room?" she asked wearily. Morgan took in the distressed state of the girl and moved over silently.

"Oh thank you! My name is Sarah Ryan! I've checked all of the others but they were already full!" Morgan recognized the girl from Slytherin, a fifth year. She seemed nice enough.

"I'm Janine Nation! It's my first year at Hogwarts! That's my sister, Morgan."

"Nice to meet you both!" Sarah brightened, packing her luggage away, shoving it between rows of school books and suitcases. She carefully placed a cage containing a sleeping great horned owl in the corner so as not to wake it.

"Whooo!" Eclipse agreed. Morgan slid farther into the seat, staring at the scenery flashing by outside. She usually wasn't shy around people, but just something about Sarah made Morgan grow quiet. Probably because she was a Slytherin.

"If you're a Slytherin how come you aren't sitting with the rest of them?" asked Janine. Morgan shot her sister a nasty glare. It was a rude question.

Sarah blushed, a tinge of colour appearing in her pale but freckled cheeks. She played with a dark red curl a little nervously. "Well... I don't get along with them a lot really. And I don't want to sit with Marcus Flint." She lowered her voice. "Between you and me, Flint looks like he was a troll changeling."

Morgan snickered, knowing just how right Sarah was. Janine began looking through her books, wondering just what a troll changeling was. Morgan smirked. It seemed odd for Sarah to be openly insulting other Slytherins. She was certainly different...

* * * * *

A ways down the train, Mariel Naberrie slid comfortably into a seat in her own compartment. She watched the scenery flash by for a while, gazing out at the sloping green hills.

"At last," she sighed as they left civilization behind. "Another year at Hogwarts..."

Mariel was begin to drift off, dreaming of her prospects for the upcoming year. She planned on gaining good grades and was hoping for a position on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team.

Her dreams were interrupted as an older, red haired girl made her way into the compartment and began to put away her trunk. Mariel watched her, waiting for this girl to introduce herself. However, she just finished putting away her things, pulled out a book and sat down.

"Uh, excuse me," said Mariel. The girl looked up at her. "Aren't you going to ask if you can sit there? Not to sound rude, but it would be nice if you had asked."

The girl flushed, embarrassed. "I'm so sorry. I was too shy to talk. My name's Sandy Brown, what's yours?"

"I'm Mariel Naberrie. I'm a third year Ravenclaw. What house are you in?"

"Did you say Ravenclaw?" asked Sandy. Mariel nodded. "I'm in Ravenclaw too! I'm a fifth year myself. Oh, I'm so glad I found another Ravenclaw! And one who isn't as shy as I am."

Mariel smiled and asked Sandy about her summer. The two girls talked for a while, bringing subjects such as school, boys, and Quidditch into the conversation.

BANG!!!

Sandy jumped. Mariel stuck her head out of the compartment. Several curious students had come out to see what was going on. With a second loud noise, Mariel noticed colorful sparks coming from an open compartment down the hall.

"What is it?" asked Sandy. "What's going on?"

"I don't know, but I want to go find out." Mariel left Sandy and made her way down the train, bumping into a small bushy haired girl in the hall. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you there."

"Excuse me, but have you seen a toad anywhere?" the girl asked. Before Mariel could reply the girl added, "A boy named Neville's lost one."

"No, sorry," replied Mariel.

"Oh." With that, the girl swept off down the hall, already in her Hogwarts robes. Mariel guessed she was a first year as she didn't have a house tie. Whoever she was, she hadn't been very polite.

Mariel approached the compartment and looked inside. Three girls were inside the compartment, all of them dissolved in giggles. One of them was a small first year girl. Another girl had dark red hair and seemed to be a Slytherin. The third girl looked to be a Gryffindor. Mariel recognized her from the Daily Prophet. She was the one who had blown up the Muggles over the summer. It figured she'd have a love for explosives.

"Apparently, Filibuster fireworks were not meant to be let off on a train!" snickered the Gryffindor girl. The two owls hooted, in agreement and laughter.

Mariel left the doorway, rolling her eyes. She wished to tell off that Gryffindor but was afraid of what she might do to her. Mariel had heard she was dangerous though. She headed back into her compartment and told Sandy what the commotion had been.

"Stupid seventh years," grumbled Mariel. "You'd think people would get smarter as they got older."

"She could get in trouble for that," said Sandy, secretly wishing she had the nerve to break rules.

Fortunately, the remaining journey was less eventful. Mariel and Sandy spent their time talking, eating, and swapping chocolate frog cards.

Finally, a while after the sun had set and Mariel could no longer make out the rolling hills, the train screeched to a halt.

* * * * *

Morgan helped Janine off the train, Sarah following. Janine stayed close to her sister in the thick crowd. Suddenly a loud booming voice rang out over the crowd.

"Firs' years! Over here! Firs' years this way!"

"That's Hagrid, he's the Gamekeeper here," explained Morgan. "Go on, Janine, he'll take you up to the castle with the rest of the first years."

"But-" began Janine.

"Go on!" Morgan ushered her sister towards Hagrid who towered over even the tallest seventh years. "He'll take you to get sorted. I'll see you in Gryffindor!"

Reluctantly, Janine disappeared into the crowd and made her way towards Hagrid. Morgan smiled, her sister could be so silly some times.

"Sarah!!! Hey! Sarah!"

Morgan turned around. A dark haired Slytherin was making her way towards the two of them.

"I'll see you around," Sarah muttered to Morgan, running over to greet the girl. Morgan shrugged and brushing past a couple of Ravenclaws, made her way over to a waiting carriage.

"Hey, Sarah, wasn't that the witch from the paper who blew up those Muggles?" asked the girl. Cassandra Bletchey, a "friend" of Sarah's who was also a fifth year Slytherin. "You pick the strangest of company."

"Doesn't say much for you, does it?" sneered Sarah. Cassandra pretended not to hear.

Cassandra Bletchey wasn't exactly what you would call a friend. She was probably the most popular(and dumbest) girl in Slytherin. Sarah was just the opposite. None of the other Slytherins seemed to like her or pay any attention to her. She figured Cassandra's paling around was some sort of a cruel joke.

The two girls made their way towards the carriages which were to take them up the castle. Another year at Hogwarts, thought Sarah, another boring, friendless year.

It was then that Sarah spotted a familiar person in the crowd. It was Oliver Wood, the Gryffindor Quidditch captain. She smirked, slightly and nudged Cassandra. Sarah knew Cassandra had fancied him.

"Hello, Ollie-kins!" called Sarah.

Oliver stopped and turned around. They were in the same year but Oliver was several inches taller than Sarah. Cassandra's face had gone red, giggling.

"What?" he asked.

"Oh nothing," smiled Sarah, brushing past him into the carriage he had been about to get into. Cassandra was bright red and avoided Oliver's annoyed gaze. "Care to join us?"

"No, I'll take the next one," said Oliver, leaving.

"What was that for?" asked Cassandra, still blushing.

"Well I thought you liked him," said Sarah. "Last year you were going on about how he was 'sooooooooooooooooooooo hot'! I kept bugging him in Potions class for you all the time!"

"He was so last year," replied Cassandra, although she still looked a little flushed.

* * * * *

Janine followed Hagrid and the crowd of frightened first years past the train and up a steep trail. The ground was rough, and Janine tripped and fell into the dirt several times. The trees were getting thicker and the climb steeper. Just when she thought she should say something about when they were going to make it to the castle, the giant Hagrid stopped.

Janine was one of many who gasped. They were standing by the edge of a huge vast lake. Across it, the shadowy shape of a vast castle could be seen, it's eerie towers reaching up into the sky. Lights twinkled in every window, reflecting off the water with the moonlight. Janine stood there, staring up at the castle in awe. Morgan had never mentioned just how beautiful Hogwarts really was.

"No more'n four to a boat!" called out Hagrid. Janine noticed a large group of small boats all lined up at the shore. Slowly, she climbed into one, being joined by three others. One was a small girl with dirty blonde hair.

"Hi," she greeted. "I'm Liz."

"Janine," introduced Janine. "Hogwarts looks really beautiful, doesn't it?"

"I hear it's even prettier on the inside," said Liz, as the two girls gazed starry eyed up at the castle. Janine didn't even notice that the boats had begun to glide across the lake, steering themselves towards the castle.

The water was as smooth as glass. The only ripples made came from the boats, cutting themselves through the water like a hot knife through butter. Once, Janine thought she saw something else move from behind their boat, but it was gone so fast she assumed she had been seeing things.

Once they reached the other shore, they climbed out of their boats and followed Hagrid across the sloping dark lawns of Hogwarts. The outline of a vast, dark forest could be seen just beyond them, around the castle's side. Hagrid walked up the stone steps of the castle and with one of his gigantic fists, knocked on the door.

The door was opened immediately by a tall thin witch, dressed in emerald green robes. Her dark hair was pulled back into a tight bun and she had the look about her that you wouldn't want to make her cross.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid.

"Thank you, Hagrid," replied the witch, "I shall take them from here."

She opened the door wider and ushered the first years inside. The group was clustered inside the vast Entrance Hall. Torches lit the stone corridors on either side and up the grand spiraling staircase. Off to the right, hundreds of voices could be heard. Janine assumed that must be where the rest of the school was.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start of term banquet will begin shortly, but before you can take your seats in the Great Hall, you must be sorted into your houses. There are four houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. While you are here, your house will be like your family. Your triumphs will earn you house points, while any rule breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup. Now wait here, I shall return for you in a moment."

McGonagall left down the hall and towards the Great Hall. Janine stood, nervously. Four houses and Morgan was in Gryffindor. What if she was put in a different house? Ravenclaw wouldn't be so bad, but what about Hufflepuff? Or worse, Slytherin? Janine stood dwelling on these thoughts until a cold voice snapped her back into reality.

"Harry Potter has come to Hogwarts." Several heads turned in the direction of the speaker. A small, pointed faced, blonde boy stood in front of a scrawny boy with jet-black hair and glasses. He was flanked by two older and meaner looking boys. "This is Crabbe, and this is Goyle," the blonde boy said, gesturing towards his gorilla like cronies. "And I'm Malfoy. Draco Malfoy."

Janine knew who Malfoy was. The Malfoys were infamous in the wizarding world. They had been in league with the Dark Lord but since his fall had pleaded innocence and were a rich and respected family. This Draco kid seemed like a prat though.

"Not a very nice one, is he?" whispered Liz. Janine nodded in agreement. Malfoy looked like he was about to say something when McGonagall returned and put him back in line with a stern stare.

She smiled slightly at the group. "We're ready for you now."

The students filed into the Great Hall two by two, Janine walking beside Liz. They walked down the middle isle in between two tables surrounded by students. Everyone in the hall turned in their seats to get a look at the new students. Janine however, didn't bother with them. She was too preoccupied with the ceiling.

There was no ceiling and yet there had to be. Far above her head was a blanket of velvet darkness, dotted with pin pricks of tiny twinkling stars. It looked just like the sky outside!

"It's not really the sky," Janine heard a girl from behind her say. "It's just bewitched to look like it. I read about it in Hogwarts, A History."

"Psst! Janine!" Janine turned and looked. Morgan was waving at her from the table to her right. Janine smiled and waved back as that feeling of dread slipped into her stomach again. What would Morgan say if she wasn't put in Gryffindor?

It seemed like forever that they walked through the hall, finally arriving at the Head Table. Professor Dumbledore sat in a large gold chair in the center of the table. In front of him was a stool. And on that stool stood an old and badly frayed hat.