Anna Grayson and The Order of Merlin
Day One

As promised, ChancellorThordarson spoke to Doctor Pearl about giving Anna a dreamless sleeping draft,which at last cleared her mind and put her into a deep sleep. When Anna awokethe next day, she never felt so rested. She stretched her arms out lavishly andfrowned. As her vision cleared, she realized, she had no idea in what bed shewas sleeping.

“Oh — yeah,” she rememberedwith a grin, “the hospital floor at Castlewood.” Hospital or not, it was stillthrilling to know she was finally at the school.

“So… finally awake are we?”came a voice from the foot of her bed. It was Doctor Pearl.

“Yes, ma’am,”Anna said, stretching once again. “I feel so much better.”

“Good — good. You said you hada headache last night, and how is that this morning?”

Anna stopped moving to checkthe pain. “Nope… all gone!” she reported, happily.

“Excellent!” replied thedoctor, lifting Anna’s wrist to take her pulse.

As she looked around at thewalls in the morning light, Anna noticed a series of beautiful paintingsbetween every other bed across the aisle. “Those are really nice,” she said,pointing at the galloping horses in the pictures.

“Ahhh…. that’s right. I hadforgotten about your love of horses. Yes dear, they are my passion as well. Asa doctor, I cannot prescribe a better remedy for those who ride.”

Anna smiled. “I’m going to missmy horse, Apollo,” she said, looking longingly out at the crisp, clear morningthrough the window behind her headboard. “We always used to love going for aride on mornings like this.”

Pearl looked at Anna interestedly. “Well, ifthat’s the way you feel, you should visit the stables when they give you timeto breathe. We have a wonderful array of animals; I should think one of themmight fill the gap nicely. I can’t promise anything as good as your Apollo, butI think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. I’ve worked very hard over the years tobring only the best animals to our school.”

“Oh… wonderful! Yes, I’d likethat.”

“Just tell the stable master,Mr. Kingston, that I sent you down for a mount. He’ll take care of you.”

“Thank you. So… do you ride?”

“Not as much as I would like.My duties here, you understand, keep me very busy. Still, the Chancellor has away of understanding the individual needs of everybody on his staff, and heinsists I go for a ride at least once a week.” She leaned in to whisper, “Hesays he can’t stand being around me if it’s been longer than that,” shefinished with a coy, little smile, and Anna giggled at the thought of ProfessorThordarson telling Pearl it was time for her to get on her horse.

“You know, my dear, I alsohappen to be Castlewood’s Vollucross Steward. Do you know anything about thesport?”

“No — nothing; what is it?”

The doctor smiled keenly as shesat next to Anna on the bed. “It’s a mounted race in and around the stadiumgrounds.”

Anna’s heart gave an eagerlittle twitch. “Really? How exciting!”

“Yes… the riders use theVollucross stadium outside the Union walls. Did you happen to see the fields asyou entered the castle on the tram?”

“Yes, I think so. TheVollucross field… that’s the U-shaped stadium adjoining the Shadowed Forest,right?” Anna answered, remembering Eric showing her the grounds outside thecity gates on the way in.

“That is correct. We have teamand individual events that take full advantage of a rider’s abilities, as wellas the beautiful countryside. Since everybody at Castlewood must participate ina sport, and you already have riding experience, it would seem the perfectfit.”

“Yes… exactly,” Anna said,happily. Although Anna knew everybody at the school had to participate in somekind of sport, she hadn’t put much thought into which she would choose. Itseemed Pearlhad given her the best possible option imaginable.

“Well then… at your firstopportunity, head down to the stables and have our Mr. Kingston show you someof our fine animals. Tryouts for the Union teams are in one month. Since you’rethe only member of this new Union, you won’tbe able to enter the team events, but the individual elements would clearly beavailable to you.” She held up a warning finger. “I should warn you however,some of our mounts are a lot more powerful than what you might be accustomedback at home.” The doctor stood. “Give the idea some thought, and, if you’restill interested, you may join us if you like.” Anna didn’t need to think aboutit at all; she had already decided to replace the stables as soon as possible.

“You are to be releasedimmediately. Here are your clothes and a bathrobe,” the doctor said, handingAnna a small bag. “Your shoes are in the bottom. I have been informed thatanother student has been assigned as your guide to help you through yourday-one schedule. They should be arriving shortly. So, let’s get those lazybones up and moving — shall we?”

“Yes, ma’am,”Anna replied eagerly, jumping to her feet. She grabbed the bag, the robe, andthen looked around to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything. “Hold on; theamulet! My brother’s amulet; where is it?” Anna realized she was no longerwearing the heavy chain around her neck. She started ripping the blankets backon her bed, looking desperately for the necklace.

“The what? Oh… that!” Pearl said, smiling. “Notto worry, dear. Your bother was in bright and early this morning. He said heneeded it back.”

Anna jerked up quickly. “Hesaid he needed it back?” A blissful thought raced through her mind. He must have decided to accept the positionafter all. Her father and Chancellor Thordarson must have talked him intostaying on as President. Anna’s heart did a happy little leap. Still, shecouldn’t be sure until she saw him. “Did Eric say anything else?” Anna askedthe doctor, hoping her brother might have left her a message or at least anote.

“No… nothing more. He had aheck of a time getting that chain off of your neck while you slept,” she said,with a grin, “but… when I administer a sleeping draft, I do the thing right!”

Anna stretched her armsgraciously again. “Oh… you certainly do, Doctor,” she replied, beaming.

“I think your brother will makea fine Student President,” Pearlannounced happily. Then, looking around to make sure no one else would hear, “Ivoted for him myself,” she said satisfactorily. “Of course… I would have votedfor him on his riding abilities alone!” She chuckled and then winked. “So… offyou go. The showers are down the hall and to the right.”

Anna collected her bag and madeher way toward the showers. As she passed the last row of beds, she stoppedagain at the painting of Merlin and his Guardians. She read from the placard, “TheOrder of Merlin.” She looked into the old wizard’s eyes, and her viewimmediately seemed to zoom into his stare. Deeper and deeper, his gaze seemedto draw her into him; deeper still, her focus started to strain.

There was a faint whisper, “Sithmaith,” which brokeher gaze as she looked around. All was quiet.

Anna looked at the paintingagain and then to the witches and wizards standing in the background. “Must behearing things again,” she said, uncertainly, as she turned and headed towardthe showers.

TWO

When Anna returned, she found Gwen waiting for her.

“Hey — Grayson! You finished burning down the castle yet?” Annasmiled. As always, Gwen had a remarkable way of making any terrible event seemlike a party just getting started. Her friend was dressed in her Artisan robes,which were opened casually in the front, and her blonde hair was pulled back ina tight ponytail.

“What are you doing here?” Anna said, frowning as she made herway back to the bed.

“Why, I’m your escort, of course. I hold the immensely importantjob… as your guide; hand-holder extraordinaire,” Gwen said, dipping hera little bow with an arm outstretched to the side. She leaned in to hug Anna asthey came together. “Actually, Professor Titan came to me this morning andasked me to take the job. He thought it would be better to have somebody youknew as an escort, since there’s nobody else in…” she hesitated, “ah…well, youknow.”

“Nobody else in this Guardian Union but me?” Anna asked, stillrubbing her wet head with a towel.

“Well… yeah. Normally, they would have assigned somebody fromyour own Hall to escort you. They did have quite a few volunteers, you know.Seems everybody is a little nosey about what happened to you last night. Can’tsay I blame them; would kind of like to know myself.” Gwen gave Anna a look ofappealing curiosity.

Anna’s mind immediately raced to Chancellor Thordarson and whathe had said about taking a lot of questions. She knew this would only be thebeginning. Realizing she wasn’t ready to discuss the details, Anna threw thetowel onto the bed, took Gwen’s hand, and sat them down.

“To tell you the truth… I really don’t understand what’s goingon either.”

“But… you look all right. No burns, right? No injuries? Thedoctor wouldn’t let you go if…”

“No — no, I’m fine.”

“What happened to you in the mirror, Anna? Why were you in therefor so long?”

Anna tried to explain, but she purposely left out the confusingdetails she knew would only raise more questions. By the end, she could seeGwen knew she wasn’t being entirely open.

“So… these voices, they just kept asking you all these weirdquestions? And they didn’t explain what all this Guardian stuff meant?”

Anna shook her head. And then, because she felt guilty about nottelling her friend everything, she added, “Gwen, there is more — a lot more.But I hope you understand… I really don’t know what’s going on. I’m just asconfused as everybody else is here, and I get the feeling my father and theChancellor know more than what they’re telling me.”

“But… why wouldn’t they tell you? Do you think they’reprotecting you in some way?”

“I don’t know, but I’m convinced they know much more than whatthey’re willing to say now. I think they’re searching for the answersthemselves. They want me to carry on as normally as possible,” Anna said,rolling her eyes, “and take things one day at a time.”

Finally, Gwen seemed temporarily satisfied. “Okay…so, what can Ido to help?”

Anna smiled. “Well, since you asked, if you can keep me fromhaving to take a bunch of questions that I can’t answer anyway… without comingoff… well… you know… smug…”

Gwen grinned. “No problem. Between the two of us, I can assureyou, I’ll be the one they think is smug.”

Anna laughed, and then reached out to take Gwen’s hand again.“But when I am ready to say more; when I need somebody to tell…” Anna lookedlongingly into Gwen’s eyes and her friend instantly understood.

“I’ll be here, Super-G. I’ll always be around if you need me,”Gwen whispered back before giving Anna another reassuring hug.

“Listen, I’m supposed to give you this… it’s your day-oneschedule.” Gwen handed Anna an envelope and watched her open it.

“Oh… it’s also a list of my classes for the upcoming term.”

“Yeah, what you’re suppose to do, see, is follow today’sschedule by the clock. Day-one is set-aside for the new students so they canreplace their classrooms, meet the instructors, and gather any information they’llneed for the rest of the week. You’re a little behind schedule today, becauseyou should have already received your room assignment. Since there isn’t aGuardian hall here at the castle, they decided to place you in the Server’shall. That’ll do for now. Eric assigned that little Sarah Bell as yourroommate.

Anna looked up. “Oh… that’s great. Well… this is working outbetter than I would have hoped. And I see we’re all supposed to meet back atthe Rotunda at six o’clock?” Anna observed, looking at her schedule.

“Right… for the start of term banquet. That’s always fabulous;you won’t want to miss that.”

“Okay. So what’s first, oh-wise-one,” Anna said, handing thelist back to her friend.

Gwen giggled. “Well, first… it looks like… you’ve got Potions;that’s the East wing, eighth floor. Professor Tearrantulla is your instructor.Oh, I know him… a bit creepy… but pretty good, overall. Then it’s on toTransfiguration and…”

“Trans-what?”

“Transfiguration. That’s transforming and reconfiguring stuff —very cool,” Gwen said, expertly. “Should come in handy when you need to turnDamon into a mushroom or something.” They both laughed. “Then you have Historyof Magic, Magical Incantations, Common Studies, Study of the Dark Arts, Care ofMagical Creatures and… hold on… what’s this? Dueling? You’ve got Dueling!”

“Dueling? Is that bad?”

“No… actually, it can be a lot of fun… but I’ve never heard of afirst-year student taking it.” Gwen said, looking up in amazement. “This must besome kind of Guardian thing. Oh my, girl you are in so much trouble.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because dueling has always been an elective; it fills therequirement for a sports activity. But it’s never been mandatory,” Gwen said,staring at the list again. “The people who take dueling plainly want to bethere, and they’re usually very good at it. No offense, but… you’re going toget trounced. I should know; I was in dueling last year. It was the only sportmy parents would allow me to take. You know,” Gwen waggled her figures in frontof her face and smirked, “have to protect these talented mitts.”

“So we’ll be in the class together? That’s terrific!”

“Yeah… but you’d better stay low for a while. If the students inthat class sense any weakness, you’re dead. They’ll pounce on you. The morewins they get, the better their grades. Being a first-year, you’re going todraw their attention as an easy target.

“Oh… I see what you mean. Well, maybe we could pair up and youcan go easy on me.”

“Yeah, okay. But, remember, if you have to go up against one ofthose sharks, make sure they know you’d just as soon drop the wands and go handto hand. Attitude is everything in there. If they know you’re liable to kickthe snot out of them outside the pit, they’ll respect you more when their wandsare drawn.” Anna stared at Gwen for a full three seconds before they bothstarted bursting out laughing. “Come on,” Gwen said, snatching Anna’s schoolrobes off the bed. “Let’s get out of here.”

By the afternoon, Gwen had escorted them to nearly all of Anna’sclasses, and she had never met a stranger array of teachers in her whole life.When Gwen had said Professor Tearrantulla, the Potions Master, was a bitcreepy, that was an understatement. He was downright bizarre. A heavy-set man,he wore extremely shabby robes and sported a messy beard that only grew underhis wobbly chin. He also had an enormous amount of hair growing out of his earsand between his eyes, which were beady black set in a baldhead. He soon gavethe new students a demonstration of what he called: The intricate qualitiesof potion making. Ladling out a spoonful of bubbling, yellow goop from ahot caldron set deep in the fireplace, he poured it into a shallow cup. Hedrank it and made a soured face. Within seconds, they all watched in amazementas Professor Tearrantulla’s beard started growing at an astonishing rate. By the time the students hadstopped clapping for the genius of the potion, his beard was so long it lay ina tangled mess up to his knees on the floor.

“Oops…over did it a bit!” the teacher said, laughing at himself.

It was the same in the other classes as well. Professor Nevork,the Tranfiguration teacher, it turned out, was a Siamese twin; two identicalbrothers joined at the chest and hip. They had four arms and legs, and brightorange eyes. They also had the habit of speaking in unison most of the time, asif from a single mind.

“We prefer to be called ‘Professors Nevork’,” they said together,introducing themselves to the students. They turned a lamp into a bat, whichimmediately flew out the window. “We loose more furniture that way,” theProfessors said, sounding agitated, and then they began to squabble with one another about thechoice of spells they had used during the demonstration.

Then it was on to The History of Magic, where a tall, thin, andrather hyperactive teacher, a Madam Bolcher, buzzed nervously around the room,passing out course outlines, and even some early reading homework. This, shesaid insipidly, had to be completed before the first day of class.

“I’ve never had a homework assignment before the start of term,”Anna told Gwen, disapprovingly.

“Yeah, old Madam Bolcher is really ate-up!” Gwen growled underher breath.

“Ate-up? What does that mean?”

“Oh… you know, she’s a bit too far into it; really loves thisstuff. She lives and breathes wizard history… ate-up!” Anna giggled beforenoticing another picture of Merlin by the door on the way out. He looked muchyounger in this portrait, and it reminded her of one of those sports postersshe had seen in a Muggle shopping mall. The wizard looked young, fit, and readyfor anything. Anna avoided staring into the wizard’s eyes as they moved on totheir next appointment.

“What’s Common Studies?” Anna asked Gwen, glancing up from herschedule. “Did I say something wrong?” She saw Gwen rolling her eyes.

“Common Studies is the most despised class at the school; evenworse than History of Magic. We all have to take it, but it’s commonly referredto as Muggle subjects.”

“So we’re studying non-magic people?”

“No — no. It’s the study of non-magical things like civics, andgeology, and even some non-magical science. Most of the students think it’srather degrading to study Muggle subjects. Even some of the teachers openly sayit’s a waste of our time.”

Anna frowned. “Well I don’t think it’s a waste of time. It makesperfect sense, doesn’t it? I mean… how can you yank an eleven year-old kid outof school and tell them: ‘Right, you’ve learned enough about those subjects nowthat you have a wand.’”

Gwen shrugged. “Well… it would seem Thordarson agrees with you.I heard Common Studies was never taught at Castlewood until he becameChancellor, and my father told me this is the only Wizarding school in theworld that teaches this stuff.”

The halls in the castle were very busy as the first-years andtheir escorts moved about, looking to complete their day-one schedules. Annawas amazed at the castle’s complex array of hallways and staircases. She had noidea how she was going to remember the way to her classes the next day withoutGwen’s help.

They slowly made their way to their last appointment of the day,Care of Magical Creatures. “Professor Motim is very harsh,” Gwen said with afrown, looking at Anna’s course schedule and replaceing the teacher’s name. “Ihonestly don’t know how he ever came to work with animals. It’s too bad youdidn’t get Mr. Rosenthal.He’sthe other CMC teacher.” Gwen smiled dreamily. “He’s really handsome, but youget the feeling he’d rather spend his time with the animals than with people.”

“Sometimes I can relate to that,” Anna replied, thinking abouther brother Damon.

As they rounded the next corner in the corridor, Anna lookedaway for an instant and, WHAM! She ran straight into another student, knockingthem both to the floor.

“Hey — watch where you’re going, you idiot!” bellowed a fourth-yearstudent from the Defenders’ Union.

“Oh… sorry,” Anna said, getting to her feet quickly and reachingout to help the other girl back up. The girl slapped Anna’s hand away as shestood.

“Stupid eggs,” the girl said, brushing her robes off angrilybefore turning to pick up her books.

“Ah… as I said… it was all my fault — sorry. My name is Anna,”Anna said, reaching out a friendly hand.

The girl looked up at her and sneered. “So?” she saidsnappishly, not willing to shake Anna’s hand at all.

“So… I was just saying how sorry…” The girl suddenlystraightened and then shoved abruptly past her.

“Excuse — me,” Anna said, surprised at how rude the girl wasacting. She was rather short and pudgy, with tight-black, curly hair and a bodythat seemed to throw itself about as she moved. Anna tutted loudly as the girlpushed her aside again to get to another book lying by her feet. She saw the girl’seyes replace the purple stripe on the hem of her robes, and then saw her lips curlevilly as she stood to face her.

“You’re that new Grayson kid… aren’t you?” the girl asked her inan unfriendly tone of voice.

“Why yes… I am. How did you know my…?”

“I was at the Joining Ceremony just like everybody else and Iknow your sisters well enough; people who don’t believe the castle rules applyto them.”

“What?” Anna said in surprise. “What are you talking about?”Although the twin’s had never given Anna any reason to stand up for them in thepast, she was starting to dislike this girl’s attitude less by the second. “Whoare you?” Anna asked, staring at the other student.

“Debbie Dunning,” the girl replied, sharply. Gwen started tosnicker and had to turn away to keep from laughing out loud.

“You’re… Debbie Dunning?” Anna said in astonishment.

“That’s right. So… I see your sisters have mentioned me to you.Good! This works out just right then, doesn’t it?” She took out a small spiralpad with a pencil and, after flipping over a few pages, began to write. “AnnaGrayson… troublemaker,” she said as she wrote, and then scratched an underlinetwice. “Needs to be watched!” she added in a sarcastic tone.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Anna said, peering over to seewhat she was writing.

Debbie snapped the pad closed to glare back at her. “Just a fewnotes I keep on potential rule breakers, troublemakers, and the sort… people Ineed to keep my eye on.”

“Excuse me? You don’t even know me. Why would you think youneeded to watch me?” Anna said, loudly.

“Oh… I know you,” Debbie said, with an increasing level ofrighteousness. “I know your entire family; the lot of them — good-for-nothingtroublemakers! Thinking they’re better than everybody else. The Graysons are amenace to this school!”

Anna dropped some of her books in shock, and angrily steppedforward. “What did you say about my family?” she seethed through suddenlyclinched teeth. Who did this girl think she was, insulting her family honor?Gwen immediately stepped in front of Anna to stop her from grabbing the othergirl.

“Anna… don’t! Do you have any idea who her brother is?” shewhispered, looking to tip Anna off. Anna could see a number of other studentslooking at her in horror, half expecting Captain Dunning or another crimsonguard to move in.

“I don’t care who her brother is… she’s not going to insult myfamily,” Anna snapped back loud enough for everybody in the corridor to hear.

The Dunning girl was smiling. “No — no… let her go. I’d love tosee a Grayson kicked out of Spellsburg before the start of class,” she said, her wicked grinbroadening.

“She’s provoking you… can’t you see that? She wants you to grabher so she can get another Grayson in trouble,” Gwen cautioned Anna, holdingher back with one hand while trying to pick up one of her books with the other.

Anna pointed warningly at Dunning. “You’d better watch thatmouth, Dunning, or you’ll replace my fist stuffed in it!” The other studentswatching them looked around, half alarmed and amused at the bravery of afirst-year egg arguing with the Captain’s sister.

“Oh… is that a threat, Grayson? I certainly hope not, and withall these witnesses around to hear you. Gee, I hope I don’t accidentally trip…and fall off a bridge anytime soon. It wouldn’t look too good for you, wouldit?” she sneered.

“If you fall, Dunning, trust me… it won’t be an accident!” Annayelled. Debbie smiled as she watched Gwen pushing Anna backwards.

“Brave words coming from an egg. I’ll be watching you, Grayson,”she said, slapping her pad with the back of her hand. “I’ll be watching you,very… closely.” Anna was boiling with rage as Gwen continued to push her backout of the crowd.

Finally, Anna stopped pressing forward, but when she saw Debbieturn to walk away, she couldn’t stop herself from saying more. “Watch all youwant, Dunning, but you should pay more attention to those eyebrows of yours.”Debbie wheeled around again. “You might try thinning those out a bit… they’restarting to grow together in the middle!” Everybody started laughing andlooking at Dunning eagerly for a reaction. Debbie’s face went bright red as sheangrily flipped her pad open again and started writing. Gwen was laughing tooas she started pushing Anna backwards again. “Yeah, that’s right, Dunning…write it down, eyebrows, great-big, slope-headed prehistoric ones. Get aclue… you’re supposed to have two!”

The hallway erupted into laughter again as Gwen turned andpulled Anna bodily around the corner and out of sight. She was gigglinghysterically. “Are you mad? Don’t you know what that girl can do to you?” shesaid, still laughing and holding her sides. “Her brother is going to put you indetention.”

“I don’t care what her brother does. I won’t put up with anybodytalking about my family that way!”

Gwen frowned. “Gee, I’ve never seen you like this before.”

“What do you mean?” Anna snapped back as she peered around thecorner half expecting Debbie Dunning to come chasing after her.

“I’ve never seen you so angry. And Inever thought I’d ever see you sticking up for Tencha and Dowla.” Anna lookedback over her shoulder, realizing she was somewhat surprised herself.

“Well, maybe not them, but… she offended my family — my father!”

“But if she was only talking about Tencha and Dowla… would youhave reacted the same way?”

Anna thought for a moment before looking around the corneragain. “Yeah, I probably would. So? What gives her the right to say anythingabout my family? I can see now why Dowla pitched her into that moat last year.It’s a good thing I wasn’t there. I probably would have stopped them fromfishing her out.”

Gwen laughed again. “Well, I can tell you this. The twins wereheroes around here after what they did to Debbie. They even had volunteersasking to help them with their detention. I think everybody was just waitingfor someone with enough guts to stand up to that little pit-bull. It didn’thelp though; Debbie was worse after the incident than ever before. Alwaysfollowing people she didn’t like, and then turning them in to her brother fordetention. She’s taking up where she left off last year, that’s for sure. Andshe’s no slouch with a wand either, so you’d better watch your back. You’ll seeher again in the dueling hall.”

“I don’t care where I see her,” Anna blurted out angrily. “Yousaid it before; I’ll just chuck the wand and plow into that stupid, pug-face ofhers.”

Gwen giggled, putting her arm around Anna’s shoulder to directher away. “Come on, I’d better get you out of here before you get us both intotrouble. Wow — you sticking up for the twins; never thought I’d ever see theday. Next thing you know, you’ll be running to Damon’s rescue.”

Anna looked at Gwen in surprise. “Let’s not get crazy now…okay?” she scoffed, with an affronted smile.

As the girls completed Anna’s day-one schedule, they casuallymade their way back to the Server Hall. Gwen showed Anna the undergroundtunnels that connected the castle to the student Unions. Each tunnel lookedlike it was cut out of solid white marble that ended at a circular turret,connecting two of the Dynasty Halls. There, a massive common area allowedstudents from the two adjoining halls to mingle and visit.

On the left stood a large, blue door with gold lettering and thewords: Enter Thee Servers of the Wizarding World. To the right wasanother door, turquoise in color, with the heading: Enter Thou Artisans ofCastlewood. Next to each door stood a gruff looking crimson guard, eyeingthose trying to enter. There were portraits of famous Servers and Artisanswrapped around the walls of the turret’s inner space, with at least sixindividual fireplaces between them. There were chairs and tables of every kindarranged in front of the fireplaces, which looked like small conversation areasthat might be shared by the students. A spiral staircase wound its way up thewall to a second and third level balcony, overlooking the large space below.Narrow windows split the steal-gray walls high above, allowing dust-filledbeams of light to radiate inward. Within the center of the area, and randomlyplaced throughout, were sculptures and beautiful paintings created by theArtisan students. Several musical instruments, including a large piano, sat tothe side. It was a marvelous room, and Anna took the time to walk its circularperimeter twice before heading toward the Server’s entrance door.

“Whelp… this is where I have to leave you. I won’t be allowed tocontinue past this point,” Gwen said, looking at the Server door. “I’ll meetyou down here again at five-thirty, okay?”

“All right… but I hope they know to let me in?” Anna said,motioning toward the very large Crimson Guard standing by the door. “I’m not aServer either, you know.”

As Gwen headed off Anna noticed several students staring at her,obviously trying to get a better look at her robes. The embroidered markings onher sleeve and dragon crest put Anna back in the uncomfortable position ofbeing singled out once more. People whispered and pointed at her as she passed.I wish there was another Guardian in the castle, Anna thought fretfully.At least then they would have somebody else to stare at. Anna followedthe other Servers toward the entranceway until she made eye contact with theCrimson Guard at the door. He quickly stepped forward.

“Halt!”

Anna stopped, not knowing what to say. “I… ah… I think I’m supposedto… uhm…” Anna stammered, lifting herself onto her toes and pointing at theServer’s entranceway over the man’s shoulder.

“You are the Guardian-Grayson, yes?” asked the guard in a rathergrumpy voice.

“Yes, I am,” Anna replied, nervously. She noticed the commonroom had suddenly gone quiet; everybody was now looking directly at her. Annastared at the guard with her best, almost pleading, let-me-passface.

“You have been assigned a temporary room within the Great ServerUnion Hall. Enter the gathering space within and then turn right at your firstopportunity. You will replace the girl’s entrance to the upper floors there. Go upthe stairs to the fourth floor hallway. Your room is the first door on theleft. Do you understand?”

“Yes, sir.” Anna replied, meekly.

A single eyebrow lifted on the guard’s forehead. “Follow me.”

He turned, and several students parted to make them an aisle.Anna could see two large Server Union crests mounted on the wall on either sideof the entranceway. The guard stopped in front of one of the crests and reachedinto his robes to pull out a small plaque, which he quickly affixed to thewall. As he stepped aside, Anna could see he had mounted a Guardian crest nextto the larger Server coat of arms. For the first time since the Joining, Annafelt a twinge of pride as she looked at her crest upon the gray stone. It wasmuch more detailed than the one on her robes; the purple color was deeper andoutlined in gold. Several students moved to inspect the crest more closely, asthe guard motioned Anna toward the door.

“Have a good evening, Guardian,” he said, with a forced smile.

Anna nodded, as she passed him. “Thank you.”

As she entered the great hall, Anna gasped. The gathering spaceinside was absolutely wondrous. Decorated in royal blue, there were two-storywindows of strained glass on both sides of a stone walkway down the middle ofthe vast hall, leading to a far off door barely visible at the other end. Theceiling was at least thirty feet high and painted in a mural of marvelousscenes. The heroic deeds of Servers past were depicted in the ceiling’s curvedarches and beams. Several tables and chairs sat on both sides of the aisle inwhat looked like a massive library intermingled within the furnishings. As Annaslowly walked down the hall, several Servers looked up in amazement at theGuardian now walking among them. They all pointed and whispered, comparingtheir own stripes to those on Anna’s arm. A sixth-year girl, in robes of blueand gold trim, approached her.

“Hello. You must be Anna Grayson,” the girl assumed, pleasantly.

“Yes, I am. Hello.”

“Welcome to the Server Hall, Anna. I’m Karen Scott, one of theUnion Knights here.”

“Oh… then you might know my brother, Eric,” Anna said,hopefully.

The girl smiled. “Everybody knows Eric. We all look to yourbrother for leadership among the Knights. He’s an outstanding student, and aclose friend. It will be difficult on everybody, knowing this will be his lastyear. Do you need any help replaceing your room?”

“I was told to look for the girl’s entrance to the upper levels.I have a room on the fourth floor.”

“Yes, you’re almost there; I’ll show you the way.” Anna followedthe girl to a wide marble staircase, which turned gracefully up and out ofsight above her lit by the glow of many bracketed torches.

“Never mind them,” Karen said, eyeing the other students stillspying Anna’s robes. “Honestly… you’d think they’d never seen a new studentbefore.” Anna tried to force a smile. “Well — here you are. Just go straight upfour flights and look for your name on the door. Good luck this year, Anna. Itwas nice meeting you.”

“Thank you, it was very nice meeting you too,” Anna said,shaking the girl’s hand.

She headed up the staircase to the fourth floor, and found atight row of doors crowded one next to the other all the way down a very longhallway. The rooms must be the size of a broom closet, Anna thought asshe searched for her name among the doors. She found her room, knocked, andthen stepped inside. To her astonishment, the space within was much bigger thanit looked from the hallway. In fact, it was surprisingly huge, containing aliving area, a couch, three chairs, two lamps and even a fireplace. A nicebathroom adjoined the bedroom, which included two four-poster beds.

“Wow,” Anna said, in surprise. She could see her trunk had beenbrought up, along with the cage containing the small scops owl from home. Shehad decided to call the owl Hobbs,after the wizard she had met at home who worked for the Committee for theDisposal of Dangerous Creatures. They both had the same bushy mustache. “Oh…sorry about that,” Anna said, walking up to the owl’s cage. “I didn’t know theywere bringing you straight to the room,” she explained to the owl, which lookedvery disgruntled at being left alone and locked in its cage all night.

Anna slid one of the windows open, and then unlatched the doorto Hobb’s cage. “There you go,” she said, pointing to the window. The owlhopped through the opening and unfolded himself just above the floor. Hishandsome wings began to beat with the rhythm of an experienced flyer, turningtwo complete circles around Anna’s head before swooping to the window andlanding on its outer ledge. “I have no idea where the owlry is around here, sojust give us a tap tonight if you need to come back. I hope you have a gooddinner.” The owl looked over his shoulder, gave her a forgiving hoot, and thendropped over the edge and out of sight.

Anna could see Sarah’s trunk was also in the room, and shegroaned at the thought of her new roommate spending her first night atCastlewood alone. Although she wondered how Sarah was getting along, Anna foundherself feeling thankful for the privacy.

She sat quietly at the window, overlooking the streets ofSpellsburg below. The cobblestone walkways were busy with townspeople andstudents, walking about and shaking hands with old friends and acquaintances.Having grown up on a remote estate, kept invisible from the prying eyes ofMuggles, the city, with all its many characters, seemed incredibly exciting. AsAnna ran a finger along the stitched purple band on her arm, she found herselflooking forward to the evening’s feast.

Without warning, the strangest feeling of unease suddenly sweptover her. It was the same feeling she had felt on the hospital floor, likesomething unseen was again watching her there in the room. Anna looked aroundsuspiciously, listening hard for another heartbeat, focusing her attention onthe farthest corners of the room. As suddenly as it was there, the feeling wasquickly gone, and a cold loneliness took its place. The cool breeze blowingthrough the window made her shudder unexpectedly.

Anna found herself looking around watchfully, insuring whateverit was she had sensed earlier was truly gone. She was worried. She had tried toignore it earlier, but she couldn’t anymore. She could feel it again; somethingleft over from her fight with the Dunning girl. Anna could feel a familiarcoldness, like a winter’s wind, blooming forth from the deepest parts of hersoul. The fight had brought it on, and she knew what it was immediately aftershe had left the other girl behind. It was back; the Lethifold was present onceagain.

But for some strange reason, the return of the creature did notfrighten her as it did before. Maybe it was the ally who had told her she hadnothing to fear, that the creature was just an extension of herself. Accordingto the voices in the mirror, this thing was something she had become familiar withthrough physical contact long ago in the forests of Indonesia.Maybe this lack of fear at the creature’s return was because of her talk withProfessor Thordarson, who equated some of her abilities to those of Merlin, theAnimagus. But, perhaps, the answer was much simpler; Anna was tired. She hadgrown weary tormenting herself about the creature’s presence ever since thatterrible night in Damon’s room. Day after day, she worried about theLethifold’s existence within her, and whether it would ever come back again.Anna was weary of her own anxiety, exhausted from her efforts to guard againstthis thing she had become. She was now forced to believe she had the ability tocontrol this creature if she could only summon the courage to try.

She took a deep breath andclosed her eyes. Reaching deep, she carefully tried to lure the creatureforward. There’s nothing to fear; we are one, she thought to herselfcautiously. Stretching still deeper, Anna located the very spot where the coldpresence seemed to center itself. She finally relaxed, and gently let her guarddown, allowing the cold within to spread throughout her body. A wave ofunbelievable iciness began to penetrate her skin from the inside out. Annaopened her eyes and could see dark, misty clouds of smoke forming around herhead and arms once more. The blackness seemed to bleed from every pore in herskin, and she could feel her body begin to lighten then rise to hover over thebed. The light in the room was suddenly far too bright, and she instinctuallyslid to the floor, to the safety of darkness under her bed.

I’m okay. I’m still incontrol; it’s still me.

A swift urge of starving hungerseemed to come out of nowhere and move to overwhelm her, and it was at thismoment that Anna finally knew the change was complete. She was once again theliving shroud, the thing they called the Lethifold.

I’m still in control, Annasaid to herself, trying to ward off the panic now working to engulf her. Thisis what it must be like to be this creature, always hungry, longing to feed,looking for food. But I’m still a Grayson, I’m not starving, I’m okay;everything is fine. Anna’s senses erupted forth once again, and she couldsmell the food of living creatures all around her. She wanted to go to them, tosearch them out, to feed.

No! I will not let go of whoI am. Anna slowly hovered out from under the bed and then up the wall. Shelaid flat to the ceiling for a moment, and then slid down again to the openwindow, creeping unhurriedly around the wall to the outside. If anybody lookedup at her now, they would only see a dark shadow cast against the gray stone ofthe Union tower. She watched them hungrily, the creatures walking around on thestreets below, and although she wanted to join them, to hunt them, she remainedcalm, concentrating on her control.

Anna slowly slid back insidethe window to her room, stretched out, and then hovered through the air to herbed. It’s time to put you away now, she said calmly in her mind, as iftelling a favorite pet their walk was now over. Don’t worry. We’ll do thisagain. It’s all right… in you go.

She tried to imagine an innerdoor to her soul, which, when opened, would give her a place to keep thisnewfound companion. Anna tried to concentrate on the warm beaches of herfar-away home, and she could feel her skin immediately begin to thaw. She couldsense the creature slowly sinking into her chest, and with it, the terrible hunger,and the anger within. Anna’s body began to press down on the bed as her weightslowly returned.

Finally, Anna opened her eyesand looked out the window. “You poor — poor thing,” she said, her returningvoice shaking uncontrollably. “Always so scared, so cold, and starving all thetime; so misunderstood.” Blackened tears poured forth from Anna’s eyes as shewatched what remained of the sun drop below the mountains surroundingCastlewood.