“Je crois bon d’attendre l’année prochaine pour partir en échange!” (I think it’s good for me to wait next year to go on exchange!) Alejandra announces to Nurcan.

  “Pourquoi?” (Why?) Nurcan asks her.

  “Le Tournoi des Trois Sorciers m’a fait rendre compte qu’Il y a un vaste monde de voyage. Je veux finir ma scolarité en grand!” (The Triwizard Tournament made me realize there’s a vast world of travel. I want to finish my schooling in style!)

  Which one appeals me most between Karakalem, Fenghuang, Varshasagar, Uagadou or Mahoutokoro? Gotta pick one and learn one of their languages by January 1, 1794! I can only learn one language during that timeframe and hope to function on exchange! Alejandra is left wondering what the other four are good at, knowing only that Karakalem is best at arithmancy and divination through Nurcan.

  But before the after-school English lesson of the day starts for those who want to go on exchange at Ilvermorny, with Mélisande as their instructor, Nurcan sees a familiar face among the people who take English lessons:

  “Hey Emmanuelle, how does it feel to be among high achievers?”

  Emmanuelle lets loose a rictus. “I don’t know what… high achievers are!”

  “Just think of who has good grades around you!”

  Nurcan, Alejandra, even Ricardo and Nacien to a lesser extent. Top-20% students were disproportionately represented on even the long list of the Triwizard Tournament, and even Alejandra is in the top-10%, maybe even top-5%, if you could get there with only an Acceptable in one course, to say nothing of Nurcan, Emmanuelle reflects on how good the people she’s most familiar with are as students.

  The people in class seem to be focused on a reading drill, based on a brochure at échange Scolaire Officielle about Ilvermorny. More specifically, about special legal considerations for students.

  Namely, that one cannot take a wand out of campus, wand permits must be applied for at 17 to take their wand out of campus, and that interactions with Muggles must be limited to “those necessary to carry out daily activities”.

  I really hope that Ilvermorny isn’t 100% the same as Hogwarts, only in the US instead… I found Hogwarts students to be a little cold, then again, both Beauxbatons’ and Durmstrang’s finalists were drawn from high achievers, Nurcan starts dreading what awaits her during the 6 months at Ilvermorny.

  “Now, for the writing exercise: what practical tips would you give to an Ilvermorny exchange student at the beginning of their stay? One complete sentence per tip!” Mélisande asks the students.

  Nurcan’s tips revolve around interactions with Muggles, about how they would be more appreciative of these exchange students if they make an effort to interact with them in French, to name a few, but the core one is not to expect to learn everything about the Muggle world based solely on a few trips to Visigny.

  Naturally, I can see them coming in with the aim of learning more about the Muggle world, which I can also feel they understand very poorly because they’re cut off from it so completely. Then again, learning about other wizarding cultures must not be underestimated, Nurcan starts to get a better idea of what they could hope to get out of spending 6 months at Beauxbatons, as opposed to an entire year.

  After showing a few sentences drawn from students, Mélisande then proceeds to run-ons and fragments. Once that is done, the assignment is given:

  “Please complete this personality test from a past Homeschooling Monthly issue, dated from after the passage of Rappaport’s Law!”

  “Mélisande, what does Rappaport’s Law have to do with homeschooling?” another student with parents working at the Ministère asks her.

  “You see, Rappaport’s Law is where all the restrictions outlined in the brochure you all read as a reading exercise come from. You could easily imagine someone who could dream of attending, say, Ilvermorny but couldn’t because of their health conditions!”

  “My question is: did you go to either Hogwarts or Ilvermorny at some point?” Nurcan asks their English instructor.

  “Yes. I spent two years here before I transferred to Ilvermorny, because, you know, the New France ICW zoning ruling…”

  “How did you get to teach here?” Emmanuelle asks the ex-librarian.

  “I started out teaching English at Euro-Glyph’s Montreal location before I became a librarian here. And then I replaced a retired History of Magic prof when that prof died last summer!”

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Emmanuelle and Nurcan both leave the room, trying to get a sense of this personality test Mélisande just gave them. Which Ilvermorny house do you belong in?

  “Ne regarde pas le solutionnaire tout de suite, s’il te plait…” (Just don’t look at the answer key just yet, please)

  Speaking of the answer key, the very end of which contains the interpretation of what house values what traits, and what the archetypal members of these Houses would be like.

  And, of course, goes into more detail into the Sorting Ceremony at Ilvermorny, as it involves standing on a Gordian knot on the ground, and then enchanted statues react to a student if the house wanted him or her.

  So they both spend a bit answering the questions, as quickly and truthfully as they can.

  Horned Serpent represents a wizard’s mind, and favors scholars, Wampus, one’s body, and favors warriors, Thunderbird, one’s soul and favors adventurers, and Pukwudgie, the heart, and favors healers, Emmanuelle starts sweating before she’s off to a Quidditch practice.

  “So I got Wampus…” Emmanuelle sighs.

  “Horned Serpent for me!”

  “That was way too predictable…”

  “You say that because I was sorted into Ravenclaw for this one month at Hogwarts. But Hogwarts houses don’t translate one-to-one to Ilvermorny ones!”

  While Emmanuelle goes to her Quidditch practice, Nurcan, on the other hand, goes to the library to complete her assignments. And yet, she finds it more difficult to stay focused because people ask for her help left and right, especially as it relates to Arithmancy and Divination, but also Potions.

  After completing her assignments for the day, she returns to her room. One month from now, I will no longer be at Beauxbatons. So whatever I end up taking at FYBS level, outside of Arithmancy, will be taken at Ilvermorny. Divination, on the other hand, might have different traditions, so I might still want to take it. Remember, no more than 5 courses at that level for next year.

  She starts to think long and hard about the courses she plan on taking next year, at the FYBS level. Having already decided that she could live with only a SBD in Transfiguration, as well as in DADA, she’d probably want to take Charms, and keep taking Potions as well.

  I’m not going to continue in Astronomy either because, for what I want out of Divination, I feel like SBD-level Astronomy is enough for me. However, as much as diviners often say that the past isn’t indicative of the future, trying to learn from the past is an asset for a diviner, Nurcan starts to think of where courses fit in her future.

  “Tu penses à partir?” (You think of leaving?) Victoria asks her, while looking at what she wants to register in.

  “Dis-moi pas que tu veux retourner à Hogwarts!” (Don’t tell me you’re returning to Hogwarts!) Femke seems a little unsure of Nurcan’s motives.

  “Non. Le ministère ottoman de la Magie estime que je suis en danger ici et à Hogwarts aussi!” (The Ottoman Ministry of Magic feels like I’m in danger here, and at Hogwarts as well!)

  “Mais enfin!” (But still!) Christine interjects.

  “Autant mieux vous dire la vérité pure et dure! Que je sois une Révolutionnaire, c’est une chose, et peut-être même la plus grande experte sorcière sur la Révolution, mais, au rythme auquel les Moldus se radicalisent, les autorités ottomanes craignent que je me fasse guillotiner!” (May as well tell you the cold, hard truth! That I might be a Revolutionary is one thing, and maybe even the greatest wizarding expert on the Revolution, but, at the rate Muggles radicalize, the Ottoman authorities fear I’ll get guillotined!)

  So long as I leave Beauxbatons by December 31, I should be able to ensure that I won’t get guillotined. If my forecasts are correct, the risks will rise sharply by mid-January, but I shouldn’t have a request for extradition filed against me if I leave before then, Nurcan ruminates as her roommates freeze in place, before asking follow-up questions.

  “Mais pourquoi serais-tu en danger à Hogwarts? Je pensais que la neutralité sorcière britannique te protégeait des risques politiques moldus!” (But why would you be in danger at Hogwarts? I thought British wizarding neutrality would protect you against Muggle political risks!) Victoria rolls her eyes.

  “La source de danger à Hogwarts est plut?t ce qui a poussé à annuler le Tournoi des Trois Sorciers, pas mes positions en tant que Révolutionnaire! Je pars pour Ilvermorny à la fin du mois!” (The source of danger at Hogwarts is instead whatever pushed the cancellation of the Triwizard Tournament, not my positions as a Revolutionary! I leave for Ilvermorny at the end of the month!)

  Until then, I can relax a bit more in DADA, Astronomy and Transfiguration, but I’ll still get the work done, Nurcan then collapses on her bed after she’s done picking out what she feels would serve her best.

  The next day, Nurcan sits with Emmanuelle and Alejandra for breakfast.

  “If you pass all your HAREs with Bs or better, what would you take for these six months?” Nurcan asks the Quidditch keeper.

  “What do you mean?”

  “One course would be enough, really, but I don’t think the Ministry, or Ilvermorny, would let you go there and not take anything!”

  “If Divination is anything like here, probably Divination!” Emmanuelle lets loose another rictus. “Divination is perhaps the easiest course to get an Effort Exceptionnel or better in…”

  But, if I don’t get a B or better in it, I might have to take a different course at the EAGLE level, provided I get a B or better on its HARE, Emmanuelle starts thinking about a backup plan for spending 6 months at Ilvermorny.

  “What do your parents do at the Ministry?”

  “Dad works at the BTM! Transportation!”

  After that, Nurcan turns to Alejandra, on her other side, and asks about her travel destinations:

  “As-tu un plan pour ta compensation pour le Tournoi des Trois Sorciers?” (Do you have a plan for your Triwizard Tournament compensation?)

  “Pas de Karakalem pour moi, ni Uagadou non plus, Mahoutokoro serait malcommode!” (No Karakalem for me, Uagadou either, Mahoutokoro would be inconvenient!)

  Especially since Karakalem is best known for arithmancy and divination, neither of which appeals to me. Mahoutokoro is nothing special other than the school year starting in April, the one thing I want out of Uagadou would be wandless magic, Alejandra thinks of her academic desires.

  “Varshasagar, je suppose… mais je ne pars que l’année prochaine!” (Varshasagar, I guess… but I only go next year!) Alejandra sighs.