Crossing Pathways: The Exchange Student Program

“Um, excuse me, how far does this bus go?” The tall Hispanic girl nervously twisted the end of her long, black plait. She had already gotten on two wrong buses that morning, even though it was only half past eight o’clock, and while her interest in learning all about the land of England was strong, she had no particular desire to do so while being lost.

“It travels all the way to King’s Cross,” came the reply from the bus driver.

“Oh, thanks.” Ramona Garcia sighed with relief, and quickly dropped her fare into the collection box. Grasping the handle of her large, metal footlocker in one hand and securing her backpack with the other, she awkwardly made her way down the aisle of the bus. It wasn’t terribly crowded as many of the morning buses in London can be, and yet she was not able to find a seat. Her eyes scanned the rows of seats back and forth, but to no avail. Before long she reached the end of the bus, and had no choice but to lug all her baggage up the steep steps to the second level. A small groan escaped her lips. The trunk was heavy enough considering it held all the belongings she would need at school for the coming term, but combined with extreme jet lag from a long, overnight trip from Tucson to London and a lack of substantial food, the weight seemed incredibly staggering. Nevertheless, she somehow managed up the stairs without creating too great of a commotion.

Ramona was quite surprised to find the upper floor of the bus vacant, save for a boy in the far right corner. He appeared to be about her age, and had messy black hair and bright green eyes framed by a pair of round glasses. A book was open in his hands, but she could not read the small-printed title. He looked friendly enough, and Ramona was by all-means an outgoing sort of girl, but she was very tired and irritable (so tired that she did not even notice the oddly shaped animal cage next to him), and really did not feel like walking over and striking up a conversation. Instead, she set her bags down on the closest seat, and collapsed into the one beside it. She pulled out her Discman and large, cupped headphones and started up her “Best of Kansas” CD. But even with the comfort of her music, she still felt extremely exhausted.

Gosh, why on earth do trunks have to weigh so much? She wondered, then answered herself with: because I have to have enough junk to last me whole the semester at Warthogs or whatever that place is. At the mention of the school, the girl scowled deeply. It sure wasn’t my idea to come halfway around the world to a cold, gray, place with a bunch of weirdoes! Ramona twisted her plait angrily. What on earth were Mom and Dad thinking? But of course, she knew.

Ramona Garcia considered herself one of the luckiest teenagers on earth, in that she got along very well with her parents, and even her twelve-year-old brother Ramon. Well, on everything except one matter- her undying love of Muggle culture. Both of Ramona’s parents were first-generation, Muggle-born wizards who had attended Rintorditos Academy, a very fine wizarding school in the southeastern desert of Arizona, and they now both had successful careers as an Auror and an Ancient Magic Historian, respectively. Naturally, they were very proud of their achievements as wizards, and thus they wanted little to do with the ordinary Muggle community.

But Ramona was different. Ever since she had first visited her Abuelo Juan’s house at the age of three, she had fallen in love with the ordinary world. She watched the sports at the local university and followed pro-teams avidly. She read tons of novels in her spare time, learned to play the drums quite well, and perfected her Spanish. But what she loved the most was “oldies” Muggle music. Whether it was the Beatles or the BeeGees, she always had something playing. It drove her parents crazy. “Ramona,” her mother would say, “We spent all those years at school working to become wizards, all the while tormented by snobby kids who told us we weren’t good enough because we were Muggle. Now that we’ve finally been accepted into the community, why on earth would you want to go and ignore all that!?” Ramona would always reply, “I don’t know Mom… I just love the music!”

She tried hard to make her parents proud. She was accepted to Rintorditos the summer before 6^th grade and wholeheartedly went. She was sorted into Geckostone, her parents’ old house, and wore the purple and white crest proudly. She made good friends. She came home every Sunday so she could attend morning mass at San Xavier with her family. She always received top grades in her classes, and was currently the second-best student in the school. Ramona always did her best, and she really did love her life. Everything was just perfect.

Or so she thought.

One day, near the end of her ninth-grade year (the fourth year she had spent at Rintorditos), she was pulled out of American Magic History class and given a message that she was to report to Dr. Daniels’ (the school’s principal) office immediately. She thought it quite odd because usually students just went to their house sponsor (in Ramona’s case, Instructor Callesen, the Mathimagics teacher) when they had a question, and Dr. Daniels came to the students directly if he needed to speak to them, not the other way around. She went, reluctantly.

When she finally reached the office, she saw through the large window that her mother, father, and an unfamiliar man with a long, white beard and narrow spectacles on the bridge of his nose were standing inside with Dr. Daniels, who promptly saw her and motioned her inside.

“Congratulations, Ramona!” he said with a big smile.

“Huh?” she replied with a puzzled look.

“I had you called down here because I have great news for you. You’ve been accepted!”

She was lost. “Accepted for what?”

“Why, for the exchange student program, of course!” Dr. Daniels was practically beaming. “I’m so glad that we have such a bright, talented young student here that we can send abroad!”

“What exchange student program? And what do you mean, ‘send abroad’?”

“Why, the new international exchange student program that Rintorditos is participating in, of course. The one you applied to, along with sixty other students,” Dr. Daniels told her.

“OK, you’ve lost me,” Ramona told him. “I didn’t apply for any sort of exchange student program!”

Now it was Dr. Daniels’ turn to be confused. “But of course you did! Otherwise you wouldn’t be going to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry next year in England!”

“Scotland, actually,” Ramona’s mother corrected.

“Yes, yes, Scotland,” Dr. Daniels continued.

“Look, I’m sorry, but I honestly have no idea what you’re talking about.” She glanced at her parents. “Mom? Dad?”

There was no reply at first. Then Mr. Garcia turned to his wife. “Ana, didn’t you tell Ramona about the program?”

Ramona exploded. “My gosh, Mom!!! Why on earth would you go and do something like this? And without even telling me?”

Her mother sighed deeply. “Ramona, honey, to be honest, I thought that putting you through an experience like an exchange program would help you to refocus your priorities, make you a better witch!”

“What do you mean ‘make me a better witch’?!” Ramona retorted angrily. “I get top grades!!! I do everything you ask of me, and more! Is this about my music again? What a dumb thing to-”

“What on earth-” Dr. Daniels began while Ramona’s mother snapped, “Well, if you hadn’t” and Mr. Garcia added, “You know, I think there’s a logical-”

“Excuse me,” though the older man spoke with little more than a whisper, the whole room silenced.

“Oh, uh, let me introduce you all to Professor Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts,” Dr. Daniels’ spoke quickly. Everyone nodded.

“I think that we need to remember that despite how Miss Garcia was entered into the program, she is in the program now. I would suggest simply putting the past behind us, and looking toward the future. Miss Garcia,” he said calmly, turning to Ramona. “You have the opportunity to come and spend a year of schooling at Hogwarts School, but the final decision is up to you. I cannot make it for you, Dr. Daniels cannot make it for you, and your parents cannot make it for you. All we can do is give suggestions. If you choose to go to Hogwarts, you will be immersed in a different culture with different customs, but you will attend classes and spend time with new friends just as you do here. If you choose to remain here at Rintorditos, you will continue as you have for the past several years, in familiar settings. Now, you do not need to answer me right now, but I strongly encourage you to make your decision as quickly as possible, such that the proper arrangements can be made in due time. The important thing to remember is- do you or do you not wish to participate in this program?”

Ramona’s thoughts raced, her stomach churned. She glanced from one face to another, seeing her anxious mother, concerned father, and confused principal, before finally settling on the kindly gaze of Professor Dumbledore. His warm eyes greeted hers, and she noticed that he slightly smiled.

Whenever she tried to explain it to her friends afterwards, she couldn’t, except to say that she just knew.

“I think,” she said slowly, “I think that I would like to go to Hogwarts.”

Ramona’s thoughts returned to the present. Professor Dumbledore was right- it was my decision. Slightly embarrassed, she realized that she could blame no one but herself. But why should I blame myself? This could be a great adventure! This isn’t like me- all this complaining and whining- I’m going to start enjoying myself!

She decided then to go strike up a conversation with the boy in the corner. But before she could even stand, another wave of fatigue washed over her. She yawned loudly. I’ll go talk to him… right after I close my eyes for a minute. Almost immediately, darkness covered her and she fell fast asleep.

*********************************************************************************************

Wow, what a day to be going back to school, fifteen-year-old Harry Potter thought grimly as he rode toward King’s Cross train station through the streets of London. The sky that he could see out the windows of the second level of the bus was a dark gray and overcast, and rain fell continually as if it were a heavy mist. Riding the bus was not his favorite means of transportation- they were always so crowded and noisy- but then, the alternative would be riding with the Dursleys to the train station, and he certainly didn’t want to do that. The majority of his summer had been spent in that awful household, going between being ignored for hours on end (which he did not actually mind all that much) to constant criticism from his relatives, especially Uncle Vernon (which he absolutely hated). It had been quite a pleasant surprise that morning when Vernon walked up to him, stuffed a few coins into his hand, and simply said, “Catch the bus. It leaves in ten minutes.” He decided that despite his dislike of public transportation (he always received many strange looks from the Muggles when he carried Hedwig in her cage), he would manage all right. The very thought of escaping from Privet Drive for yet another school year had helped to brighten the otherwise dismal morning, and yet he couldn’t seem to shake the uneasy worries deep within himself. Now that Voldermort had regained full power and was walking free somewhere on the isle of Britain, Harry knew that he was definitely on his “most wanted” list.

You’re going to be all right, he unsuccessfully tried to reassure himself. Dumbledore is the only wizard in the whole world who Voldermort fears, and as long as I’m near him at Hogwarts, no harm can come to me. He sighed and tried to relax, but his thoughts continued ahead. But what if something should happen to Dumbledore? An involuntary shudder shook through his body. Gotta stop thinking and being such a pessimist! Must get my mind on something else.

Harry pulled out a medium-sized hardcover book with the title International Evolution and Adaptation Patterns of the Dark Arts written in small black letters against the background designed to look like a spinning globe. Though he had groaned when he first saw International Evolution and the three other similar books assigned by the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher (“Professor L. Cummings”, as it read on his supply list, whom no one, not even Percy at the Minister of Magic’s office, knew anything about yet) for summer reading, it really didn’t turn out to as dull as Harry had expected. They had certainly helped pass time during the remainder of the summer; his holiday at the Burrow with Ron back at the beginning of the summer had been very brief, and thus most of the break had been spent reading during the middle of the night and any other time he could safely stow away to his room. To his utter surprise, he found that he rather enjoyed the topic of study. He had been particularly fascinated by the development of hexes in Latin America the first time he had read the book, and decided that he would look over that chapter again to pass the time on the bus.

Harry was so absorbed in his reading that he didn’t even notice the girl enter from below and sit down in the farthest corner from him. Only several minutes later, when he heard a loud clunk as the bus went over some sort of bump in the road did he look up. He saw a medium-skinned Hispanic girl with a long black plait thrown across her shoulder such that it hung almost down to her lap. Her head was bowed, and it appeared that she was asleep. Harry wondered if she was a tourist, as she wore white cross-trainer tennis shoes and a baseball cap for some unfamiliar sports team.

Looking around to find what had made the noise, his eyes spotted her headphones, and followed the cord down to the floor, where her CD player lay, open with the blue CD inside still spinning. Putting down his book, he walked over to where she was, picked up the CD player, and placed in atop her school trunk next to her. He looked at the girl, and saw that she was, indeed, asleep.

I should probably wake her up, he thought. It would be bad for her to miss her stop. He gently tapped her shoulder, and said, “Um, excuse me, you might want to wake up.”

**********************************************************************************************

Ramona awoke with a start. Someone had been tapping her shoulder. As her eyes focused, she saw the boy with black hair, who was saying, “You don’t want to miss your bus stop.”

“Oh, gosh, thanks,” Ramona replied, taking off her headphones. She looked down to her lap. “Hey, where’s my CD player?” she anxiously asked.

“It’s over here, on your trunk. It fell on the floor,” he told her.

“Thanks again,” Ramona said, smiling. The boy returned her grin.

Well, here’s your chance to be friendly, Ramona told herself. Start up a conversation. “So where’re you headed with all your luggage?”

“Off to school for the term.”

“Cool. Me, too.” Ramona paused, and silence followed. “Oh, I’m Ramona, by the way.” She stuck out her hand.

“I’m Harry. Nice to meet you.” Another pause. “So, uh, I gather you’re not British. Where’re you from? The states?”

“Yeah, Arizona. The Tucson area, to be precise. You know where that is?”

“Well, no, not offhand.”

“Oh. Well, it’s in the southeastern part of the state, about 60 miles north of Mexico. It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere, to be honest.”

“Ah, OK. So why’re you here?” he asked.

“An exchange student program. I’m here for the whole term, and I can renew and stay the whole year if all goes well,” she replied.

“Oh. Cool.” More silence.

What an awkward conversation, both Harry and Ramona thought at the same time.

“So, uh, how old are you?” Ramona finally asked.

“Fifteen. I turned fifteen in July. How about you?”

“Same. But my birthday’s in April.”

“Oh,” Harry said.

Yet again, the conversation (such as it was) died down to silence. Fortunately, the bus driver’s voice broke though on the intercom: “King’s Cross, next stop.”

Relieved, both Ramona and Harry quickly gathered up their belongings, and headed down the stairs to the main level of the bus. Just as they reached the exit, it stopped and the doors opened. Harry walked out first, followed by Ramona. She was not used to carrying so many things, and nearly fell down the last step. Before she did, though, Harry noticed her struggling and offered his hand. Gratefully, she took it, and managed to get out of the bus without accident.

“Thanks so much,” Ramona told him. “I appreciated your help.”

“No trouble at all,” he replied with a smile. “So, do you know how to get to your platform?”

“Um, yeah. A girl from the school’ I’m going to go to is supposed to meet me right here at 9:15. And if that clock’s right,” she said, pointing to the large clock posted on the wall of the train station, “she should be here any minute.”

“Oh, OK. Good luck, then!” He turned to leave.

“One question, though,” she added quickly. “Do you have any idea where I might be able to buy some jellybeans? I’m all out, and I doubt I’ll be able to get them on the train.”

“Well, you never know.” An odd look crossed his face briefly. “But anyway, you can buy jellybeans at that newspaper shop right over there.”

“Thanks once again!”

“You’re welcome. Have a good school year!” he told her as he began walking toward the trains.

“You, too!” she replied. Taking his advice, she walked into the newspaper store, and easily found a large bag of Jelly Belly jellybeans. She carefully counted out the right amount, and handed them to the cashier. Just then, Ramona heard the clock striking the quarter-hour, and she quickly ran out of the store to look for her “guide”. Sure enough, she saw a girl about her age with frizzy brown hair pulled back into a ponytail holding up a small sign with her name written on it. A large trunk similar to Ramona’s was on the ground next to her, and she held a blue leash that was attached to a very large, ginger-colored cat.

“Hello!” Ramona greeted her cheerily. “I’m Ramona.”

“Pleased to meet you!” the girl replied with a big smile. “I’m Hermione Granger. I’m so glad that you made it to the station OK- I know how confusing the Muggle transportation around London can be. You did come by airplane, right? I’ve only been on an airplane once, but it was really great! Anyway, I can’t wait to hear all about you, so let’s get to the train. It’s right this way…” Hermione began walking down the row of platforms, and Ramona followed.

What a nice girl, she thought, and suddenly she stopped dead in her tracks. She raised her head toward the sky, and a smile appeared. The rain had stopped pouring, and the bright sunshine was peeking through the clouds. This is going to be a great year, I just know it!

“Wait up, Hermione!”