Oath

Noah tumbled on his way to his dormitory, which was at the top of Ravenclaw's tower, on the west side of Hogwarts.

'I need some sleep.' He mumbled to himself, not only was he more tired than house-elves after a long day of tasks, but his belly was overstuffed with fat.

'At least I am fairing better than her.' He looked over to Juniper on his right, her eyes occasionally closed by themselves for each step she took.

'Well, that was to be expected, she isn't used to that type of food.' Juniper yawned loudly, startling a few students on their way to the common room. 'Yup, definitely not used to it.'

For the better or worse, at the end of their slow crawl, a huge metal door greeted them. It was adorned with small statues of Rowena Ravenclaw, the house founder, guarding its side and a raven which stared down at them, its painted eyes almost seemed to follow their movements.

"Discover my riddle and you may pass, answer it wrong and may shame follow your steps!" A distant voice exclaimed while making a dramatic pause in its speech.

"What has a head and a tail, but doesn't have limbs? It doesn't move on its own, but is in constant movement." It silenced itself, waiting for an answer.

'For real... was it supposed to be that easy?' He looked around waiting for someone to answer already, he desperately wanted to fall asleep into the dreamland.

"It is obviously a snake!" Someone yelled from behind.

'ARe you FUckinG seriOUs maTe? 'It doesn't move on its own' the voice said, and you dare to say it is, obviously, a snake? Am I really in Ravenclaw?' He frowned slightly.

The door stood closed, oblivious to the kid's answer.

"It is a coin." The rest of the students declared in a chorus while staring disapprovingly at who answered first. He just put his head down in embarrassment, trying to hide from the stares he received.

"You may now enter." The door finally opened itself.

'Thank god! For a moment I thought I was in the wrong place.' Noah sighed in relief before entering the common room.

'Amazing!' He gasped for air at the sight as he came into the circular room. The sidewalls were filled with bookshelves, meant for the bookworms known as the Ravenclaw, while columns separated them from the center, which had elegant couches and tables placed. The moonlight came from the top of the tower, painting everything in a mesmerizing blue color. On the far right from the entrance, stairs were built outlining the edges of the room, making it possible access to the other 3 floors, where they had their bedrooms.

Another statue of Rowena was built in the center of everything, it held a stone plaque which basked into the moonlight.

"Our emblem is the eagle,

Which soars where others can't climb,

Our knowledge is a needle,

Precise and lethal."

Noah was impressed by the fine detail put into each word, engraved to perfection.

'Are the other common rooms like this?' He wondered before rising the flight of stairs. Even though he could admire the architecture and art put into the room all day long, he could fall to the floor from tiredness anytime soon.

"First years! Before you get to unpacking your things, I need to state some rules of the dormitory." The prefect said while glancing at each one of them, disrupting Noah's plans. She had short blond hair, amber cold analytical eyes, and a doll face. "First, and foremost, your rooms will be decided by duels!" She emphasized her words while holding her small hands high. "If you want to stay on a higher floor, where the better rooms are located at, then you and your roommates will have to defeat the ones who stay there." Her excitement was as clear as day, her eyes took a mad turn from the previous emotionless one.

'That one is crazy.' He thought lazily, not quite realizing what was going on.

Silence followed her enthusiastic lines. They weren't expecting for that, no one had told them about it after all. Not even their brothers or sisters who already were part of Ravenclaw.

"You may be thinking... isn't that prohibited by the school?" She asked with a silly smile.

'This doesn't sound good.' Noah woke up from his slumber as he surveyed the surroundings.

'This doesn't look good at all!' He screamed on the inside as the 5th graders blocked the doors to the outside.

"You are indeed correct!" She paced back and forth while speaking. "That's why we need you to swear... swear that what is said here, stays here." She bit her thumb as she stopped in front of a bookshelf. There, she pulled a book away as a secret passage formed in front of Rowena's statue.

"Come on, what are you waiting for?" She asked while smiling.

Now sensing the danger, they looked around for somewhere to run to, but couldn't find the door anymore. It was already too late, the older students already had made an enclosure around them. The only thing they could do was to bitterly play along with her.

"Calm down, will you? We aren't asking for your sacrifices, just to keep a secret. Secrets don't hurt anyone, now do they?" She comforted them the best she could while with a crazy grin on her face.

"I assure you, this method will only make you work harder! You will become better, smarter than you ever could be." She said to them as they descended into a bleak room with a short ceiling. The only font of light were torches which glowed a blue fire.

'Fuck, what is this?! A satanic cult?' Noah gulped dry air as he descended into the unknown.

'This... this wasn't supposed to happen, the books didn't show this.' They finally arrived at a wall, which had names written with fresh blood, and yet another statue.

"These are the names of everyone who entered Ravenclaw, since..." She sighed before continuing. "Voldemort destroyed Hogwarts."

"Write your names on the wall and hold the statue's hand. By doing so, you will swear to never spread the secrets of our house, that you won't ever interfere in the initiation of other first years and that the dormitory rules will be respected." She looked once more to the wall, gathering strengths for what she was about to say. " Break your vows, and death is unavoidable." She said slowly.

There were gasps of terror and a few thumps as some of them fell to their knees.

'This is too much to say for such young children, but it is necessary.' She lamented.

"Is it an Unbreakable Vow?" She heard from behind the crowd.

"Yes, that's a good assumption for a first-year... may I know your name?" She asked while searching for who said it.

Noah made his way through the bulk of people. "My name is Noah." He stated calmly. "I would like to know who we are doing the vow with." He stared at her, reading her expressions for any lie.

'Well, if she is lying about the terms or who we are doing it with, then she is stupid. An Unbreakable Vow won't work if both parties don't accept it, so being untruthful will only make it go wrong.'

"The founder itself, Rowena Ravenclaw." She replied without breaking the staring contest.

"What? That's impossible." He looked at her incredulously. "She is dead, there is no way we could make a vow with her."

"It is more complicated than that, little Noah. She isn't dead, but also not alive at the same time." The prefect smiled at his innocence, there were things the younger wouldn't understand after all.

"Then... she has a Horcrux?" He stuttered midsentence, not yet realizing his mistake.

She coughed in surprise, looking aghast at Noah's statement.

"How did you know what a Horcrux is?" She urged, a few of her classmates sharing her shock. The other first-years were lost into their chat, not understanding a thing.

'Shit! Why can't I stop myself from saying these things around?'

"I've read about it in a book." Was his sole response.

'Read it in a book, huh.' While her friends believed in him, she didn't buy it. She would keep an eye on him from now on.

"Fine, but we need to start the process right away. There isn't more time for questions." She stated while going back to the wall.

"Wait, just one more... please?" He pleaded.

"Ahh, okay, go on." She relented to the cute boy.

"How may I call you?" He asked politely.

"Haha, call me Elise." She smiled at him.

'How peculiar this boy... he is so calm despite what is happening.'

"Charmed to meet you, Elise." He bowed slightly while staring at her ember eyes.

'Are you for real Noah?!' Juniper marred holes into him with her eyes.

'He must be nuts, that girl just threatened our lives.' Meanwhile her internal conflict, Noah thought of how important was being polite to get on Elise's good side. Going by his character judging, the girl was someone trustworthy. Also, if the vows were only those three, then there was no problem at all with accepting them.

'There is no reason to go against her.' He thought with a calm smile.

"Very well, let us begin then." She gestured to the wall.

'Not like they have much of a choice. They either accept it or forget it with an Obliviate. Fortunately, we so far didn't have to resort to such measures since the start of all of this.' She thought while acting as an intermediary to each vow.

One by one, they went through the process. They would make a small cut in their hands and write on the wall, then they would drink a restorative potion to heal faster. Else, the teachers would be suspicious of the similar cuts on their hands. They would hold hands with the statue as Elise went through the vow terms while touching her wand on their hands. A red light would envelop their arms as they accepted what she said.

The wall appealed more to Noah's curiosity though. He wondered how the blood didn't dry or drip down, or the fact that it had a faint aura around it.

'Good, now I've entered a secret society. At the very least they wish for our improvement through training, not for us to put belief into some Pureblood bullshit.' He reasoned with himself, even though he was calm on the outside, that couldn't be said on his inside. He always maintained serenity on the outlooks, because it was essential for successful negotiations and interrogations.

"You may choose your roommates now, do know that there is no division between boys and girls though. There is a small bathroom into the bedrooms, so respect each other's boundaries. That is one rule of the dormitory, make sure to follow it." She said firmly.

"Why are you so calm?" Juniper whispered to him.

"What good will fear do to you?" He whispered back while getting closer to her. "Hey, we need to choose our roommates, so how about me, you, plus another 3?" He argued.

"Uhmmm... fine. Do you know anyone else?" She looked around for anyone alone.

"No." He stated as a matter of fact. "But I will find someone." He went into search.

1 minute... 5 minutes passed... she saw him going around the crowd while asking people around...

7 minutes and he was back...

With another 3 girls behind.

'Noah... you will be dead by tomorrow, mark my words.' She narrowed her tired eyes.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" He asked guiltlessly, looking almost offended by her antics.

'Sorry, but if I get to choose who I will spend my time with until the 5th grade, then the choice is obvious. On one side I will have to deal with annoying immature boys, while on the other, I stay with cute respectful girls. Just think of having to deal with another Neville Longbottom, or stupid Ron Weasley... even an arrogant Malfoy? No thank you very much!'

"Oh... you will know, that is certain. I will make sure you know." She cracked her neck and knuckles, scaring the other girls. Goosebumps stronger than those Noah got from Lisa assaulted him everywhere.

'Better learn some defensive charms.' Cold sweat ran down his forehead.

They all rose to the first floor, going for their rooms.

Tomorrow I unpack, way too much tired to do anything right now. He decided before falling to a deep slumber. The others only glanced disapprovingly at him.

He was oblivious to them, for he dreamed for the first time since ages.

He was sincerely excited for what was to come in his near future.