Patrick Stump and the Flying Car Brigade

Chapter 70

Chapter 70

A few days before school was supposed to start, I went to Ilvermorny to visit and be Sorted. It would have been rather embarrassing for me, a seventeen year old, to be Sorted with the first years, so the Headmaster, Agilbert Fontaine decided that it would be easier this way. I was allowed to bring one guest with me, so Pete came with me. My parents had already visited the school, so they let Pete go instead.

Both of us Apparated to Massachusetts. Like Hogwarts, Ilvermorny had a number of Anti-Apparition spells cast on it, but it was possible to get close to it. I Splinched my left eyebrow on the way there, but that was certainly better than taking the Floo Network. Once we arrived, the two of us hiked up Mount Greylock until we reached the gates of the famed American wizarding school.

There were two marble statues guarding the gates, and I recognised them as Isolt Sayre and James Steward, the school's founders. The gates, unfortunately, seemed to be locked, so I took out my wand and pointed it at the gates. "Alohamora!" I said, and the gates opened.

Pete and I both entered the school, and I was impressed by what I saw there. We were standing in a large, circular room with a stone floor and a Gordian Knot in the centre of the floor. There were also four massive wooden carvings. Each one represented one of the Ilvermorny houses: Horned Serpent, Wampus, Thunderbird, and Pukwudgie. The ceiling of the room was very high, and there was a wooden balcony encircling the room.

All of a sudden, a thin, bearded man entered the room. He was wearing blue and cranberry robes. "You must be the transfer student from Hogwarts," the man said. He shook my hand and said, I'm Agilbert Fontaine, headmaster of Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"I'm Patrick Stump, and this is my boyfriend Pete Wentz," I said.

"Nice to meet you both," Professor Fontaine said. "Patrick, if you wouldn't mind, could you please step into the Gordian Knot?"

I nodded and walked into the Gordian Knot. Pete and Professor Fontaine waited in silence, and at first, nothing happened. I was about to ask Professor Fontaine if anything was supposed to happen at all when the carving of the Pukwudgie raised its arrow into the air.

"Excellent," Professor Fontaine said. "It's settled, Patrick. You're a Pukwudgie."

I grinned as I looked back over at the carving. While Pukwudgie wasn't quite the same as Hufflepuff, I was satisfied with it. Maybe I would even make some new friends in Pukwudgie. I was sure that Ilvermorny was as full of adventure and opportunity as Hogwarts.

"Can I try?" Pete asked.

"It's only for Ilvermorny students, Pete," he said.

"I don't care what you think, as long as it's about me!" Pete exclaimed. "My boyfriend's going to Ilvermorny, and that's close enough. I want to try!"

Professor Fontaine sighed. "I suppose you can give it a try," he said.

Pete stepped into the Gordian Knot, and like when I was Sorted, it took some time for the carvings to react. "Patrick, when we get back to Chicago, can we..." Pete said, but Professor Fontaine motioned for him to be quiet, so Pete stopped talking.

The carving of the thunderbird suddenly began to beat its wings. "You're a Thunderbird, Pete," Professor Fontaine said.

"Awesome!" Pete exclaimed. "Thunderbirds are great!"

"Pete, what were you asking me earlier?" I asked.

"I was going to ask if we could get some pizza," I said.

I rolled my eyes. "Yes Pete, we can get pizza at home," I said. I wasn't in the mood to upset him, even if I would prefer a little more variety in my diet.

Pete smiled. "Thanks Trick," he said. "I love you."

"I love you too, Pete," I said.

Professor Fontaine took us on a tour of the castle. I imagined that it would be very different when it was filled with students, but it was nice to see where my common room and my Defence Against The Dark Arts classroom would be. Their version of the Great Hall was not nearly as spectacular as the one at Hogwarts, and I was disappointed to hear that Muggle Studies was a required class for all students at Ilvermorny, but there were other, more pleasant surprises. The Herbology gardens were beautiful, and I appreciated the fact that the staircases didn't move. Ilvermorny would be much easier to navigate than Hogwarts.

At the end of the tour, Professor Fontaine gave me a list of shops where I could purchase my school supplies. Unlike in Britain, where everyone shopped in Diagon Alley, wizarding stores were scattered throughout the United States. In fact, I could buy all of my school supplies in Chicago. A few of my items from Hogwarts could still be used at Ilvermorny, like my cauldrons and my wand, but there were textbooks and robes to buy. Pete thankfully agreed to go shopping with me, so I already knew that we would have a good time doing that.

It was nearly dark by the time Pete and I left Ilvermorny. Instead of going home immediately, Pete and I rested at the top of Mount Greylock for a few minutes, watching the setting sun. As it sunk lower and lower below the horizon, Pete wrapped his arms around me. "I'm going to miss you while you're at school," I said.

"I'll miss you too, but we'll make it work," I said.

"I know we will," Pete whispered. "We always have."

I snuggled closer to Pete, and the two of us watched the sky fade into black. Pete's gorgeous face looked even better in the moonlight. I closed my eyes, listening to Pete's soft breaths and feeling his arms around me. As I did, I remembered what Sirius had said to me several months earlier. Promises are made if you just hold on.