The Ones Left Behind

[Madeline Kaimarama]

Maddy sprawled on the beach beside her little brother, gazing absently out to sea. It didn't feel real. It hadn't felt real since Wills had started preparing for the journey, and now he was gone. The train had gone off to Hogwarts, and he had left them behind. It wasn't an abandonment, of course, Maddy knew he'd write lots and come home for holidays, but it still felt like one. She hadn't been away from her big brother for any significant length of time ever in her life. Maddy had some small consolation in that next year she'd be joining him, but even that worried her more than it comforted her. Then she'd be leaving Sebastian, and she was worried about how he'd cope on his own.

Awkwardly, Maddy reached over and ruffled his hair . . . like Wills had done to her before he left. She had to say something, to break this brooding silence that had settled over them. "This is so weird. Hey," she added abruptly, as a thought occurred to her. "What are we going to tell the Fletchers?" The muggle kids they played Dungeons and Dragons with would want to know where Wills had gone, and Maddy realised now that they should have thought of something to tell them long before now. "I don't feel right lying to them, but . . ."

 

[Sebastian Kaimarama]

Sebastian played absently with the sand, letting it run through his fingers. It felt like his old life was doing the same. He knew this marked a turning point, that nothing would ever be the same for the three of them again. It scared him more than he could bear. He loved their life, homeschooling together, adventuring in the forest together, doing almost everything together. Now one of their number was missing, and next year Maddy would go off to Hogwarts too, and then for two whole years he'd be on his own. Well, just him and mum and dad. It wasn't fair. Sebastian was the least equipped of all of them to deal with that situation, Maddy and Wills were both so much more confident and independent and more everything than him. He couldn't bear it.

"I hate it," he said with unexpected vehemence. "I miss him already, and next year I'll miss you too, and it'll be just me, and I hate it." Sebastian slumped against his sister's side. "I don't know," he sighed. "I hate that too." It felt so wrong, hiding such a huge part of their lives from their friends, and Sebastian knew, Statute of Secrecy, blah blah, but it couldn't really be right to lie so much to people just because they couldn't do magic. Just because they were missing out. "I guess we should ask mum and dad, they'll know what to do." They must have to deal with this heaps, with their muggle coworkers at the Department of Conservation.

 

[Madeline Kaimarama]

Maddy put her arm around Sebastian with a heavy heart. She just wanted to protect him forever, and it hurt her to know she wouldn't be able to. "I know," she said soothingly. "It's not fair, and I don't like it either. But at least we still have each other for this year, right? We can have lots of cool adventures and make Wills so jealous." Going to Hogwarts would slowly pull apart their way of life, but Maddy was determined it wouldn't pull apart the siblings too. She knew Seb was hurting, so she had to be strong for him, even though it hurt her too.

Mentioning their friends had just made him even more despondent, and Maddy needed to change the subject before her brother sank into a full-on sulk. "Hey," she said in an attempt to brighten the tone a little, "what houses d'you think they'd be in if they did get to go to Hogwarts?" Sebastian always loved thinking about alternate universes, and maybe pondering one where the Fletchers got to come too would be a welcome distraction for him.

 

[Sebastian Kaimarama]

Sebastian looked at the ground, and squeezed his handful of sand. He knew Maddy was trying to make him feel better, but all she was doing was reminding him how alone he'd be in the future. Still, he would try to cheer up. "What if we find, like, a glow worm cave without him? Can you imagine how mad he'd be?" He chuckled. "Actually, I've got some pretty cool ideas for our next campaign, too . . . though it'll be weird doing it without Wills."

Sebastian smiled weakly. "I don't know. Heck, I don't even know what house I'd be in." Privately Sebastian feared he wasn't good enough for any of the houses: too timid for Gryffindor, too shy for Hufflepuff; not smart enough for Ravenclaw or cunning enough for Slytherin. "I wish they could come," he mumbled. That way there would be none of this lying, none of this distance - and once they were all at Hogwarts, they'd be able to play D&D together just like before.

 

[Sophie Elliston]

Sophie was slowly trying to adjust herself to a new life in the wizarding world. She had just moved in with Spencer and Charlotte which was a good first step. She would be going to Hogwarts next year, leaving behind her muggle friends for good after telling them she was moving to a nearby boarding school. She wasn't sure how she would keep in contact with them with the lack of technology at Hogwarts but was sure she would find a way. With the train to Hogwarts having left already, Sophie decided she would walk around Obsidian Harbour by herself, trying to take her mind off the big change. After all, she didn't have her computer with her anymore and so couldn't think of anything better to do. There were plenty of different shops in Obsidian Harbour from an apothecary to an ice-cream shop, but Sophie didn't have any money. Truthfully, she hadn't even held wizarding money yet and wouldn't even know where to get it.

As Sophie walked down the streets, she heard the word 'Hogwarts' come from a younger girl's mouth who was sitting on a bench with someone who looked to be her brother. She quickly hid behind the closest tree, eager to hear what they were saying about it. They were talking about the houses, trying to figure out which one they would be in. Sophie hadn't thought that far about Hogwarts and didn't even know what any of the houses meant. She couldn't think of their names from the top of her head, but knew there were about three or four of them. Without trying to be rude, Sophie etched closer to them. "Do you go to Hogwarts?" Sophie asked shyly, instantly regretting her words. Of course they didn't go to Hogwarts! The train had already left.

 

[Madeline Kaimarama]

"Well, I hope I'm in Gryffindor," Maddy said decisively. "Though really, I guess I hope we're both in the same house Wills gets. It'd be best if we could all stay together once we get there." Which meant, technically, that she hoped Wills would be in Gryffindor. "I already can't wait til he writes." Maddy wanted to know everything about Hogwarts, everything her brother was up to. If she couldn't spend real time with him, he'd better at least write to them every day.

Maddy looked up abruptly as she heard a voice from above and behind her. The small girl standing there looked about her own age, and Maddy smiled sunnily at her. This was exactly what Sebastian needed: a distraction. Knowing how shy he was with new people, she led the conversation. "Nah, we were just seeing off our big brother. I'm going next year, though. You wanna sit with us?" Maddy added, patting the sand beside her. "I'm Maddy, by the way. This is my little brother Sebastian."

 

[Sebastian Kaimarama]

Sebastian nodded. Maddy probably would get into Gryffindor like she wanted to, and he could see Wills there too. But he could never be a Gryffindor, which meant that even when he finally did get to Hogwarts he'd be isolated from his siblings. Seb let his fistful of sand run gradually out from the bottom of his clenched hand. "It'll probably be tomorrow, he's gotta tell us what house he got right away. Well, he'd better." The memory of how Wills had tried to leave without even giving them a hug goodbye still stung, like he was already trying to distance himself from them.

He started and sat up properly when a stranger came up behind them. Sebastian studied the girl curiously, though trying not to be too obvious about it. She looked around Maddy's age, and like she was quite nervous to talk to them. He was relieved when Maddy took the lead. The Kaimaramas had grown up in relatively isolated circumstances, and while his older siblings were naturally charismatic enough that they were good at making friends anyway, Sebastian lacked that skill. "Hi," he added awkwardly.

 

[Sophie Elliston]

Sophie was glad that the girl that spoke to her wasn't rude. She hadn't met any rude people in the wizarding world yet which was definitely a pro. It meant that Hogwarts probably wasn't that bad after all. "I'm going next year too!" she exclaimed with a small burst of excitement. She was happy that she already knew someone in her year as it made her feel a bit more comfortable stepping into an unknown territory. Sophie thanked the girl before sitting down on the bench and listened as she introduced both her and her brother Sebastian. "Hey." she replied to him, giving him a small smile. "I'm Sophie. It's nice to meet you." It really was nice to meet some fellow magical people and she couldn't wait to tell her cousins that she had. "What are all of the houses about?" Sophie asked curiously, eager to know more about the school that she was going to attend in a years' time.

 

[Madeline Kaimarama]

"Oh, cool!" Maddy grinned. "We'll be classmates, then." While the prospect of getting to Hogwarts and not knowing anybody was not a concern for Maddy, she was still pleased to meet someone who would be in her year. It could be the start of her making friends on her own. Maddy guessed from Sophie's next question that she was a muggleborn, but it didn't register as a particularly interesting fact to her. "Well, there are four houses, that you get sorted into based on your personality, by a magic mind-reading hat. So there's Gryffindor, which is for brave people, Ravenclaw, which is for smart people, Hufflepuff, which is for nice people, and Slytherin, which is for sneaky people."

 

[Sebastian Kaimarama]

Sebastian listened without much enthusiasm as Maddy babbled on about the houses. He knew all this stuff, and he was still in a bad mood over William leaving. But something Sophie said caught his ear and piqued his curiosity. If she hadn't known about the houses, then how had she known how to get to Obsidian Harbour? She was in the same year as Maddy, so she couldn't have received her Hogwarts letter yet. She shouldn't even know that any of this existed . . . should she? "Wait, are you a muggleborn? How did you get here, then? No offence," he added quickly.

 

[Sophie Elliston]

Sophie listened as Madeline explained it to her, using one word to describe each of the houses. She knew about the Gryffindor and Slytherin one but wasn't sure about the others and was still slightly confused. She didn't think her cousin was that brave, but then again, maybe the mind-reading hat could see something inside others that not even they could see. "That's cool! But why should people be separated based on their personality? Shouldn't the whole point of learning be interacting with other type of people too? I don't really see the point in the houses." Sophie shrugged, figuring she might see the point later on when she actually attended the school.

As the boy spoke, Sophie was slightly shocked. He didn't seem like the type to ask questions and Sophie was a bit taken aback by it. Nonetheless, she was quick to answer. "Because my cousins go to Hogwarts... well, one graduated last year, and now I'm living with them to get used to the wizarding world before I go off to school." she explained. Her aunt told her that some people would be a bit against muggle-borns and she hoped that these two people weren't going to be like that.

 

[Madeline Kaimarama]

Maddy nodded, frowning, as Sophie asked her next question. "You know, I never thought about that?" Maddy had never really considered the reasons for the houses in any depth, they just . . . were. She couldn't honestly say she really cared, either. "I guess . . . like, it's a handy way to find people who have something in common with you. And I think mum and dad said the atmosphere in the different common rooms was pretty different, like, the Ravenclaws like to study a lot, the Gryffindors are more rowdy. That sort of thing." She paused, considering, watching the waves hit the beach. "It does make me a bit nervous, to be honest. I really don't wanna be separated from my brothers." She squeezed Seb's shoulder, a gesture of affection and possession.

Maddy looked sharply at Sebastian as he suddenly asked a rather personal question. That wasn't his usual style. Although, now that he'd said it, Maddy was curious about the answer too. "Seb! Rude!" she said, jokingly, half-meaning it. She didn't want to make this girl uneasy. Her answer was interesting, though; Maddy hadn't heard of a situation like that before, though it made sense.

 

[Sebastian Kaimarama]

"Yeah," Sebastian added. "I don't like the idea of being judged by a magic hat either." He was bitter about the whole process, about the prospect of being separated from his family, about a hat thinking it knew where he belonged, but he wouldn't say any of that. "I guess they gotta split students up somehow, there isn't room to have them all sleep in the same place, so why not do it in some fancy magic way?" Privately, Sebastian thought if he was designing a school system he could do better worldbuilding than that. Hey, what if he incorporated it into a campaign? Establish a magic school - or something - where William's character had gone, as a way to subtly introduce the Fletchers to the idea? He'd have to think about that.

Oh no, oh no, she looked uncomfortable now. He hadn't meant to make her uncomfortable, to make this awkward, he'd just been curious. "Sorry," he muttered. "That's interesting, though." Sebastian hadn't known inheriting magic could work like that, but he wouldn't say that either, that made him sound prejudiced. He wanted to just say silent and stew in how he had messed up, but that would be rude too. "It's nice of your cousins to do that for you," he said instead.

 

[Sophie Elliston]

Sophie was glad that she wasn't the only one who didn't agree with the houses. She nodded as Maddy explained it, realising that she probably wouldn't want to share a dormitory with annoying people anyway, especially if it was for a whole seven years of schooling. "Yeah, I guess you're right. But why are you worried about being separated? The only thing that's really different is that you wouldn't be sharing the same common room. I mean, you'd be in a different year anyway, and I can imagine you'd still be able to talk to people in other houses." Sophie told them, not really trying to be positive, but be honest. After all, they lived with each other outside of school anyway, so it wouldn't be much of a difference.

"That's okay." Sophie assured Sebastian as he apologised to her. She was happy that he found it interesting that she was a muggle-born who had magical relatives, as she didn't know if it was that common, and was glad that he had apologised. "It's nice of them, yeah. But I'm going to miss my brother and sister, and all of my friends too. Do you have friends you will miss?" Sophie asked, genuinely curious. She knew they must have friends, but didn't know if their friends would be joining them at Hogwarts or not as there were other wizarding schools their friends could go to.

 

[Madeline Kaimarama]

Oh, why did she have to ask that? Why did she have to zoom in unerringly on the exact topic Maddy was trying to avoid? She didn't want to think about their separation from Wills, and she didn't want to make Seb upset again. But nor would it be fair on Sophie to just ignore her question. "The three of us are really close. We grew up doing everything together. And I know you can talk to people in other houses, but it'd be way better if we were in the same house, so we can keep close." Of course, Maddy was worried for her older brother too, going off on this great adventure without them. She knew he could handle it, but he would miss them too. She wished she could come with him right now, not wait another year - but that would mean leaving Seb alone even sooner, which was worse still.

Maddy was fairly sure Sophie's next question was technically addressed to Sebastian, but she answered it anyway, needing something to take her mind off her worry. Of course, thinking about their friends was sad too, but in a different way. "Yeah, we have some muggle friends, it sucks that they won't get to come too. We were just talking about them before you arrived, actually."

 

[Sebastian Kaimarama]

"We've been homeschooled up til now," Sebastian added, sensing Maddy's discomfort and trying to assuage it. "Even the whole thing of being in different years is kind of weird." Wills would be learning completely different stuff to them, he'd already be way better than Sebastian at magic by the time he got to Hogwarts. Of course, he was way better than Sebastian at a whole bunch of stuff anyway, but he'd really be bragging about this when he came home for the holidays. And he wasn't even allowed to show them, which also sucked.

Seb wondered if it was common for wizarding kids to have muggle friends - it was inevitable in the small town they'd grown up in . . . and with so many small towns in New Zealand, there were probably a lot of kids in the same situation. That was a sad thought. "They love playing imaginary games about wizards," he said, in subdued tones. "And it's all real and we can't tell them. It's not fair."

 

[Sophie Elliston]

Sophie listened as Maddy answered her question, respecting her opinion on the matter. She listened as Sebastian spoke too, understanding why it would be weird. "Are all wizards homeschooled before going to Hogwarts? Do they have to be?" Sophie asked, wondering whether or not she should be homeschooled like they were. She suddenly felt as though she missed out on a lot, despite the constant reassurance from her family that she would fit in fine. It was daunting not knowing what to expect, but it was also exciting, and Sophie couldn't wait to learn about everything the wizarding world had to offer.

"Oh cool! You have muggle friends!" Sophie exclaimed with a smile. "Do most wizards have muggle friends? How did you meet them?" Sophie didn't want to be nosy but she couldn't help her curiosity. After all, she wanted to know as much as she could about wizards and the wizarding world which was why she moved in with her cousins, and if these people would tell her then she would be grateful.

 

[Madeline Kaimarama]

Maddy was glad that Sophie didn't push for more detail on her previous question. School was a foreign concept to her, so she wasn't sure how helpful she could be, but at least it wasn't sad. "Nah, not all wizards. Most kids go to muggle schools, and I think there are a couple of wizarding schools in the bigger cities." She shrugged. The schooling habits of others had never really interested her. Besides, school was boring, except for the parts about nature.

"I dunno about most wizards, I guess they must since a lot of kids go to muggle schools. But Te Anau - that's where we live - is a really little town, so it was pretty inevitable for us." There weren't many other wizarding families there - not that Maddy would rather befriend wizards than muggles. There was nothing wrong with muggles, and she'd fight anyone who said otherwise.

 

[Sebastian Kaimarama]

Sebastian felt a surge of resentment at his sister's vague, nonchalant attitude. Maddy didn't care abut school, she only wanted to learn about dragons and magical creatures. She wouldn't even pay attention to the awesome magic lessons. And yet she got to go so long before him. It wasn't fair. "I think more of us are than muggles," he added. "'Cause most schools are muggle schools, and a lot of parents want their kids to get more perspective than that." He paused, thinking about the implications of that sentence. "Although I would've thought it'd be more important to understand muggle society too."

Sebastian nodded along with Maddy's answer, lapsing back into his usual pattern of letting her do most of the talking. he wasn't sure what he thought of Sophie; she hadn't done much other than ask questions, but he supposed in her position he would want to ask a lot of questions too. And at least it helped keep their minds off Wills' absence. "Where are you from?" he asked, since Maddy had brought up their hometown.