Thrust

*Chapter One: The Tunnel*

If one had bothered to look into the dining room of a typical American family on a chill, rainy November afternoon, one would have seen a young fifteen year old girl sitting at the dining room table, sipping quietly at a bowl of soup. If one had bothered to look into the dining room of the Sanders' home one would most undoubtedly be noticed as the Sanders' dining room had large windows that on a sunny day let in a large amount of welcome sunlight. If one had bothered to look into the dining room of the Sanders the young girl, whose name was Elyse, would most assuredly have noticed and asked one exactly what they were doing peeping into a stranger's home.

However, as no one was rude enough to peer into the Sanders' dining room on Thanksgiving Day Elyse was unbothered and continued to quietly sip her soup in peace. Before I continue with this story I will give you a little background information on Elyse Sanders and this really rather gloomy Thanksgiving Day. Elyse Sanders was your typical American teen. She attended Mount Livingston Central High School in Central New Jersey; she was fairly popular with many friends around whom she could be often found hanging with at the mall, movies, amusement parks and etc. She was a fairly attractive girl with strawberry-blonde hair and unusual brown-violet eyes. Now, before you come to the conclusion that the Sanders' were a truly horrid family that didn't celebrate Thanksgiving together let me explain something to you. They were indeed intending on spending Thanksgiving with their relatives. In fact, in just a few short hours they would be driving to New York City to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner with their family members.

So, you may ask. Why is Elyse eating? As any American--and any foreign person who has experienced the American holiday known as Thanksgiving--will know that Thanksgiving dinner's usually mean lots of food. So much in fact that most people will refrain from eating anything at all earlier in the day to make room for the explosive dinner they intend to soon enjoy.

Well, the answer to that question is: Elyse was hungry. She often was. In fact she ate rather more than most girls her age did. Never fear! Elyse will be starving by the time dinner rolls around. That's just how Elyse is. Almost bottomless appetite. Is she fat? You may ask. No, is the answer to that question. She is an avid volleyball player and practiced almost daily.

Now, on with the story. Oh! I've forgotten one vital fact. One extremely vital fact. Elyse Sanders was indeed a witch. Not that she knew that of course because then what would the fun of this story be? No one knew why exactly but Elyse's magic school letter never arrived. And now, we finally begin our story.

While I had been explaining all of this to you, Elyse had been steadily spooning her vegetable soup and had now finished.

Licking her lips in satisfaction, Elyse stood, picking up her empty bowl as she did so. She had just been on her way to drop the bowl off in the kitchen, when she heard the sound of laughter. She paused for a moment before realizing that the joyful sound was coming from the living room where her brother and sister were playing. Smiling, she made to leave the dining room once more. But then she heard the sound again and realized that it was not coming from her left, which was where the living room was, but from her right. She frowned, set her bowl back upon the mahogany table and turned to face the elegantly twisted wood wall. The laughter sounded again. Puzzled she leaned forward until her ear was pressed against the wall and listened hard. The sound of many voices laughing resonated from the wall, right in her ear. She leapt backwards in shock, a miniscule cry coming from behind her lips.

What on earth was this?

It was then that she noticed a small crack in the wooden wall. Without thinking she slipped her finger into the crack as if hoping this motion would give her answers to this unexplained happening.

In a way it did. Almost immediately after her finger had entered the crack it began to widen. It kept doing so until the crack was no longer a crack, it was now a hole. A hole large enough for her to slip through.

She stood staring at this impossible thing for several minutes, eyes wide, mouth open in a perfect O. Then her sense of adventure kicked in. She didn't know, she didn't know why but for some reason a tunnel had opened in her wall. She didn't know about anyone else but she, personally, was putting in down to weird secret Colonial passageway. She was already making up a story in her mind about how George Washington had personally helped build the tunnel so that patriot Americans could escape from the British.

Her heart pounding in excitement, she climbed up into the tunnel. It continued before her, on and on until it disappeared into darkness. Well, she certainly wasn't stupid enough to go in there without some sort of light. There could be ridiculously enormous spiders in there or some such.

She turned to return to the dining room, intending on going to grab a flashlight. However, before she could climb out the tunnel hole before so large was now rapidly shrinking, shutting out the light that pouring in. Elyse started and leapt forward, hoping to slip out before it shut. It was no use. The hole closed tight with an odd wooden grind. She sat in silence for a moment, her shocked breathing filling the darkness. And then she panicked. A horrified cross between a gasp and a cry erupted from her lips. She reached out and began to kick the wall before her harder and harder. Nothing. She added to her efforts by punching, scratching even attempted biting. Nothing happened. The wall stayed just as solid as ever.

Oh! But maybe her family could hear her through the walls? She renewed her bangs and added to it by shouting but no one came. After half an hour she stopped, slumped to the ground, her breath coming in ragged gasps. It was no use. She would have to continue along the tunnel and hope it came out somewhere hospitable.

She sat still for several moments recovering her strength. Then she sat up and began to crawl. The tunnel was too low to stand straight in. The darkness was thick and terrifying, the walls--although she couldn't see them--close and the ground hard. Her claustrophobia--which she'd been too distracted to let bother her--was now starting to make itself known.

She swallowed hard and struggled against the urge to kick and scream, trying to push the walls and ceiling away from her. She pushed onwards, one hand in front of the other, one knee after another.

You can do this, Elyse, she thought to herself. The walls aren't going to hurt you, there are no spiders or mice and when you get to the end you'll find tons of clean air. Just a little bit further. She didn't know whether or not it was only a little bit further but she felt better just by telling herself that.

And onward she went, never ceasing in her crawl although her knees were starting to ache horribly and her hands felt numb. Finally after what felt like hours she found her way blocked by another wall. Almost exactly like the one she'd left behind. She paused. What was this a dead end or something?

She fought to control her breathing, feeling the wall for a door handle or hook or something that would lead her out of this nightmare. There was nothing. The wall was completely smooth. And that was when she broke down. She collapsed, sobs wracking her whole body. She would die in here. Alone, starved, air-deprived. No one would know what had happened to her. She barely knew what had happened to her. After a while she calmed herself, eyes opening. Maybe there was another way out. A branch off of the tunnel that she had missed or something.

She sat up and leaned against the wall behind her, trying to recover her strength. She would start to look just after she'd caught her breath.

And then she realized that something was jabbing into her back. She whirled around. The wall had been smooth when she'd felt it. Hadn't it? Now that her eyes where open she realized that it was not entirely pitch black as it had seemed. Or as it had been. A soft golden light was emanating from a small circular knot in the wooden wall.

She didn't know what it was but if it would help her out of the horrendous situation she was currently in she didn't care what it was.

She reached out and touched it.

The wall slid down and sunlight rushed through, stabbing her eyes harshly. But she'd barely had a minute to enjoy this miraculous sight when she felt herself fly through the air and crash into the ground.

Elyse blinked up at the ceiling above her. It was gray stone and medieval looking. The floor she was lying on seemed to be made of the same material. She frowned and sat up, moaning slightly as her aching muscles protested. It was then that she realized that she was not alone. She had landed in what looked--at least vaguely--like a classroom. There were rows of desks at which sat students who were all wearing black robe-like uniforms and staring at her with astounded expressions on their faces. Elyse stared back with an equally if not more stunned expression.

"Good gracious," a voice breathed rather tremulously. Elyse turned her attention to the area where the voice had come from. At the head of the room an elderly woman was standing, also wearing robe-like things that were a deep purple color. As if that weren't odd enough she was also wearing a tall, pointed wizard hat.

If Elyse hadn't been so relieved to see other human beings--albeit fashionably challenged ones--she'd have raised her eyebrows and said something a little less than nice.

As it were she just stared back at the woman, eyes wide, and mouth open in shock. The woman didn't seem to be willing to be about to say anything else which prompted Elyse to open her mouth.

"Um..." she said eloquently. "Is this like...a school or something?" she asked. Then blinked. Why had that question come out of her mouth? Shouldn't she be asking where the hell she was? Why they were all dressed so strangely? What the hell had just happened to her? But no. The first question that came out of her mouth was whether or not she was in a school. Well, it was a start.

The woman blinked. "Yes, yes this is Hogwarts," she said as if expecting Elyse to know what Hogwarts was. Well, she didn't. And who would name a school Hogwarts anyway? Was the mascot a hog with warts or something? Could you get anymore gross?

"Is it for like...rich people or something?" she asked as she looked around once more. It really looked as if she were in a castle that belonged in Shakespeare's time. The students around her expressions became even more incredulous.

What? It was a perfectly acceptable question. Who else was wealthy enough to go to school in a freakin castle?

"Or royalty?" she added as an afterthought. After all, princes and princesses had to be educated as well. The students around her exchanged amused looks and a few snorted. Elyse felt a flash of anger go through her. What the hell were these people's problems? What kind of people were they to just sit there and laugh at her when she was obviously completely confused and a little scared. The older woman at the head of the classroom seemed to realize what Elyse was thinking because she stepped forward.

"Why don't you follow me," she said kindly. "I think the headmaster will be able to help you."

Elyse smiled at the woman and stood. Finally! Some help! She would explain to this headmaster guy what had happened and hopefully she would soon be on her way back home. She couldn't possibly be far from her house. She hadn't been in the tunnel for an extremely long time. The woman walked towards the large wooden door, gesturing for Elyse to follow her. Elyse did so at once.

The woman turned to the rows of students and said rather sharply, "You will all wait here quietly. If I am not back before the bell rings please move onto your next class, I will inform you of your homework later if that does happen." Then she turned, having stared each student in the eye, and walked out of the room. Elyse hastened to follow her.

She stepped out into a stone hallway, lined with portraits, tapestries and...suits of armor? Elyse blinked at them, eyes wide. The suits just completed the medieval feel. There didn't even seem to be any electricity that she could see. At least, there were no lightbulbs.

The woman set off down the hallway at a brisk pace, Elyse hurrying to keep up. The last thing she wanted to do was get lost. She continued to look around her with wide eyes as she followed the woman. It was quite obvious by now that she was in a castle. The fact was confusing her.

There were certainly no castles anywhere near where she lived. She didn't even know that there were castles in America period. She turned her head as something white and transparent caught her exploring eyes. She came to a complete stop as the full image of the object reached her dumbfounded brain.

Her mouth dropped open and her eyes widened. Standing--or floating rather--before her and the woman was man dressed rather oddly with a large ruff around his strangely tilted neck. The...apparition smiled (yes, it moved) at Elyse and the woman. Then parted its lips and said, "Good afternoon Professor McGonagall."

Elyse took let out a scream, her brain working furiously to come up with a plausible explanation for the thing floating before her talking and moving.

The thing (she didn't want to call it a ghost) and the woman--Professor McGonagall now--looked at her with raised eyebrows. As if she was the mental one!

"Good afternoon Sir Nick," Professor McGonagall greeted after a moment. "Excuse me, I have some important business to attend to," she said to...Sir Nick as she moved forwards. Elyse scurried after her, tossing Sir Nick frightened and slightly curious looks over her shoulder.

The rest of their journey was free of any more of such unpleasant surprises--though Elyse could've sworn she'd seen one of the portraits scratch its cheek--and it wasn't long before they stopped before a stone gargoyle.

"Sugar Quill," Professor McGonagall said to it. Elyse blinked in confusion and looked around for another human. Who was she talking to? And what was a Sugar Quill? It soon became apparent that the gargoyle had been programmed or whatever to move when "Sugar Quill" was said to it. A password of some sort then.

The gargoyle leapt aside and a staircase appeared. Professor McGonagall began to climb the stairs and Elyse, after tossing the gargoyle a curious look, followed her. The staircase spiraled up until it let out onto a landing where there was only one large wooden door.

Professor McGonagall knocked upon the door. A soft male voice issued from behind the door, "Enter." Professor McGonagall pushed open the door, Elyse following her.