Chapter Text
Author's note:
This fanfiction will follow the original game story with a few differences here and there. As of now I don’t know how Sebastian will end up but I’m thinking of changing his final quest for the “better” and give them a happy ending! All and all this should be mostly about the twins evolving in Hogwarts and building a strong friendship (and romance) with Ominis, Sebastian and Anne. I’m not sure yet if I’m going to include the ancient magic stuff or the main quest, we’ll see I guess! All good vibes and fluff and happy endings :)
--> English isn't my first language and this is my 2nd attempt at writing a fic, I'm sorry if anything seems odd and please don't hesitate to give some feedback :)
The twins:
(click on the image to see it in full resolution)
--> my reference for their father is Tom Hiddelston in this picture :)
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Chapter 1:
Last Hope / Dernier Espoir
“And you didn’t think to mention that particular point before?” My brother shouts, furious. I cringe at the way his voice booms, echoing in the small office.
I give him a pleading look, my green eyes wide with anxiety. We really shouldn’t be getting in any more trouble right now, and shouting at our newly met professor isn’t the smartest thing to do at the moment. But deep down, I am thankful for his reaction. This is bad news for us, for me in particular, and I can already feel my anxiety creeping in on me, knotting my stomach painfully.
“As I said, you don’t have to worry about this, we didn’t realize it would be an issue”, Professor Weasly responds, unfazed by my brother’s sudden outburst.
“Of course it’s an issue! What’s the point in all this if we’re gonna end up separated again!”
I turn at my father but he doesn’t say a thing, He continues to look at Professor Weasley, brows frowning on blue eyes. He too is taken aback by the unexpected news and waits for further information on the matter.
“You will be able to make your own choice, at the end of the day, the Sorting Hat is there to guide you into your true house.” She says in a voice that intends to be reassuring, but fails to convince my brother, or anyone else for that matter.
“The sorting what? You’re telling me a stupid fashion accessory is supposed to make that decision for us?” Alphonse turns to us with a bewildered expression, his platinum blond hair falling on his forehead. He instinctively combs it back into place with a familiar gesture.
“Alphonse, calm down!” My father finally says, appalled but not surprised by his own son’s audacity.
“I will not!” Al snaps back. “The only reason we came here is for Em to be safe, to feel safe, and it won’t happen if I’m not with her! I told you we were not to be separated! Ever! We stick together, no matter what!”
My father’s face goes pale as he stares back at Alphonse, anger growing in his eyes. But he doesn’t respond, because he knows, just as I do, that he is right. This was not part of our plan, by far.
“And you will be together! Please, this is really unnecessary, the Sorting Hat will take your wish into consideration, I promise you!” replies Professor Weasley, remaining perfectly calm and professional despite my brother’s crude behavior. On the other hand I can see that my father’s patience is very visibly growing thin by the second.
“Yeah well, you better pray it does because I swear… ” but he can’t finish before my father cuts him, outraged this time.
“Alphonse, that’s enough now!” Al glances back at my father, disputing him with the same blue eyes for a few seconds, but he finally retreats and lowers himself on the couch, fuming in defeat next to me.
“So…” I hesitantly break the heavy silence with a quiet voice, “how is it going to go, exactly?”
“The carriage will take the three of us to Hogwarts” Professor Weasley turns to me, all kindness in her brown eyes. “We will arrive shortly before the train carrying the other students. This is quite a peculiar situation for the school as well, we usually don’t enroll new students past first years, so a few accommodations are prepared for you and will be explained by the Headmaster, Professor Black, in his office upon your arrival. Then, I will accompany you into the Great Hall where the other students will be seated, waiting for the Sorting Ceremony to begin. Your ceremony will proceed before the new first years and you’ll sit among your peers, at your house table”
“Given we are at the same table of course…” my brother grumbles, still irritated.
“You will be. I understand your concern, truly, considering the sad predicament that brings you to Hogwarts.” She eyes my scar for a moment and I have to restrain myself from pulling a few more strands of hair and hide behind them, but she turns her gaze back to Al the next second. “Let me reassure you, again, it will not be a problem. Miss LaVallee’s integration, as well as yours of course, is our top priority.”
Al doesn’t look convinced but he doesn’t add anything to my father’s great relief.
“I have to thank you once again for your help, my wife and I… we were desperate to find a suitable solution for our Emilie. We were truly disappointed by the way BeauxBatons’ headmistress handled the situation all these years.”
“Told you Fontaine was a cunt….” Al mumbles under his breath, thankfully nobody except me hears him this time, and I give him a sharp elbow jab, side eyeing him reproachfully. He looks back at me, his eyebrows still deeply frowning and seems to relax a little, and nods in understanding.
I get how he feels though, my whole bullying situation didn’t worry our former headmistress, Madame Fontaine, too much. It went on for four years, each school year escalating in violence, whether it was verbal or physical.
But this isn’t the time to make things even more difficult than they already are. If Alphonse continues this way we will start the year with more troubles than we ended the last one. Professor Weasley seems patient enough with his temper at the moment but I don’t want to risk getting cross with her. We need allies at Hogwarts, especially among the staff, or else if anything goes wrong again, nobody will move a finger to help us. Exactly the same way they didn’t back at BeauxBatons.
My brother isn’t a troublemaker, not usually, but he isn’t afraid to speak his mind either, or act on it for that matter, especially if I am involved. The lack of concern about my well being from the school staff really drove him to his worst behavior. To the point he ended up taking care of things himself, “making our own justice” as he said, multiple times, which only worsened my treatment there really. It didn’t help that Hélène, our school queen bee and prime perpetrator of my mistreatment, is the daughter of Madame Fontaine. No wonder she never had to worry about any consequences…
The news of the house system is still a shock though, and the sole idea of being separated from my brother is already taking hold of my brain with cold dread. At BeauxBatons there is no house or caste system, girls and boys are only separated by their gender and year in different dormitories.
Problem is, the girls and the boys dormitories aren’t in the same building, and no girls are allowed in the boys or vice versa. I tried my best to spend the least amount of time in the girls wing, it was there that the bullying was always the worst. And of course, as protective as Alphonse was, he just couldn’t enter our wing. It was magically sealed by a powerful spell, taking away from him the possibility to protect or care for me during the long nights. Many of which I ended up spending in the school infirmary as I was too anxious to go back to my wing. Thankfully, Mademoiselle Moreau, the nurse, was a kind soul and always allowed me to stay as well as my brother. She was one of the very few who seemed to care for me there.
So, if we were to be separated again, by house this time, I really don’t know how I’ll handle it. I am already too anxiety driven as is, I don’t need another bomb like this to drop on us. Hopefully, Professor Weasley is being honest by saying we will be given the choice, or that they will at least accommodate things if we end up in different houses. Hopefully…
I try to focus on my breathing but my anguish is starting to betray me with trembling legs and watery eyes. I close my eyes shut, in an attempt to slow down my rising panic. I feel Alphonse’s right hand landing on my knee, squeezing it gently in reassurance. He noticed my distress of course, he always does, I take his hand in mine and squeeze it back. Holding his hand and feeling his comfort, I already feel a little better, and I open my eyes again.
Whatever happens at Hogwarts, we will face it together. Plus, we made the vow to get the hell out there immediately if things don't go the way we were promised they would. We won’t let things get out of hand this time.
“You don’t have to thank me, it is really a pleasure for us to welcome your daughter and son at Hogwarts. We will make any accommodation needed to ensure their good integration.” Professor Weasley says to our dad, the kind smile widening on her face.
We remain hand in hand throughout the rest of the discussion with our new professor, each comforting the other, until it's finally time for us to part ways with our father.
The four of us are standing outside now, in a quiet street of London, right before the carriage that is to take my brother, Professor Weasley and I, to Hogwarts.
My dad stares at the both of us and my heart stings seeing worry and tears already forming in his eyes.
We are so lucky, I always tell myself, to have the parents we have. They are both loving and caring, more than any other parents I’ve met. Unfortunately parental love and affection isn’t always enough to ensure their children’s happiness, and that’s the realization that is breaking my father’s heart at the moment. He knows that whatever happens in Hogwarts, he won’t be able to do anything about it. We will be one our own, and he hates it. This place is our last chance, or at least my last chance. And he prays that we finally have the opportunity to be happy, my brother and I.
My father comes to me first and pulls me in a tight hug, holding me close to his heart. I try not to cry but the tears are already spilling down my cheeks before I can do anything about it. I always hated the separation, if only we could just stay home… He gives me a squeeze and puts his hand behind my head, his fingers tangling through my dark blond hair, pulling me deeper in the embrace.
“We love you darling, you know we do. Please, tell us if anything goes bad okay?” He says to my ear, his voice slightly trembling.
“I will…” I struggle to speak through the tears. I was always too sensitive and emotional, which was one of the many reasons I wasn’t much appreciated at school. “I’m sorry Dad” I finally add, feeling defeated again.
“Don’t be, it was never your fault, darling. Never.”
We pull back from the hug, my father cups my cheeks with his hands and erases the tears away with his thumbs. He looks at me smiling this time.
“Your mother and I, we are proud of you.” He looks at my brother before adding, “the both of you.” Alphonse is a few steps away, his eyes misty as well. Dad holds out his arm towards him in invitation, and my brother immediately rushes in and joins us in the hug.
We remain like this, the three of us, for a long moment, relishing the affection we have for one another.
“Everything is going to be okay, and if it doesn’t you owl us the very minute, alright?” Al and I nod in silence, too emotional to speak. “Your mother and I, we love you both, don’t forget that. And we’ll see you for christmas, and you will tell us everything about your new British friends with your new terrible British accent”.
We both laugh, it was always a joke in our family. Father was born and raised in England, and mother in France. They had met in Paris when dad was on vacation and he stayed there for her, “Coup de Foudre!” He always tells us with his god forsaken accent. And mother’s English is, to this day, just as good as father’s French is. Horrible, accent wise of course. Alphonse and I grew up in a mixture of English spoken with a French accent, and French spoken with an English one. We always loved to make fun of them, speaking while imitating their terrible accent, it had become a game. We would regularly have full conversations at dinners this way, Al speaking French with an overly exaggerated English accent, and I responding in English with a strong French one. It was just the way we were, as a family.
Dad gives us a last squeeze before finally releasing. The three of us look at one another, all a mess of tears with reddened cheeks, but smiling. He turns to Professor Weasley who had been patiently waiting all this time by the carriage, a comforting smile on her lips.
“Okay, so I think it’s time. Professor Weasley, I entrust you with my children. Please inform us if anything goes wrong and I apologize in advance for that one,” he points at my brother who frowns in betrayal. “He promised to be good but I know this kid too well, keep an eye out for me, please.”
“Oh, I will Monsieur LaVallee, trust me, I will.”
At that, I step into the carriage, my brother quickly following me, and sit down breathing carefully, trying to stop the tears from flowing. He takes my hand again in reassurance and I know he will hold me until we finally enter the castle. And then, our new life at Hogwarts will begin. A new chapter. I hope this one won’t end with blood and tears.