Chapter Text
July 17, 1918
Anastasia didn't believe them. Being herded down into the basement for a "professional" portrait was lame. In September she should be heading back to Koldovstoretz for her final term to become a witch. She'd spent every summer since the Great War started to help heal soldiers with the means she'd been taught in the Azure Court. Now, she had no doubt she'd never return to the Russian school. Tears started to form in her eyes as she touched her corset that was weighed down with the jewels she'd sewn into it.
Anastasia fell to the back of the group with just one soldier with her. She stumbled as the soldier grasped her elbow. She turned, concern in her eyes as she recognized Yuri. He placed a finger to his lips and she gasped as they disappeared from the stairs to the cellar. It was probably just as well that the remaining soldiers couldn't count well.
June 5, 1912
“We have a witch in the family?” Czar Nikolas asked, almost stridently. “Isn’t it enough that we have that Priest here?”
Anastasia and Olga listened carefully at the keyhole. They’d seen the snowy owl landing on the table with a message earlier. “Look, she’ll learn a lot. Times are troubled. What if we are separated as a family. She can take those skills elsewhere. She’ll also learn to live simply. Everyone lives on the same level at Koldovstoretz. She might even learn enough to help Alexei,” their mother’s voice sounded strident, almost pleading.
Silence reigned as the Czar sighed, “Okay, I know you’re listening. Come on in.” Olga and Anna tumbled in on top of each other and faced their parents as the other door opened as their other three siblings also came in. They stood in line, oldest to youngest, as they all eyed the message with hope. The Snowy Owl sat sedately nearby, waiting the answer. “A message from Koldovstoretz School came in, today. I know you’ve heard of this school in secret. This means one of you is a Witch or Wizard. So, to give you the biggest clue, who’s birthday is it?”
Anastasia’s eyes grew wide as she squealed with delight. She ran over to grab the message. No more nannies and governesses, she was going to get a proper education. She opened it to read it, not noticing the woman entering the room. She was simply dressed in the dress of the day and a walking cane in her right hand. Spectacles perched on the end of her nose as she watched the excitement in front of her. “Professor Ivanova,” Czarina Alexandra murmured.
“One of your sisters attended Hogwarts, correct?” Ivanova asked.
“Irene,” Alexandra responded.
“Come, Anastasia, we’ll gather your school supplies today before you start the school,” she held out her hand. Nikolas pulled out a bag and handed it to Anastasia. She looked at it confused, “It’s for you to pay for everything you’ll need where we’re going. We’ll make the exchange of money at Ved'ma Torgovyy Tsentr. We will be back before 7,” she told the anxious parents.
Next thing Anastasia knew her world turned topsy turvy and she found herself on a snowy street outside an Apothecary. She glanced around as the Professor pushed open the door and smiled at the chemists inside. They nodded at both of them as they chatted with the patrons inside. They walked through and to the back. Ivanova pulled out a stick and tapped on a door. It swung open and they stepped through. It was a whole different world beyond the door. An enclosed area held shops as far as the eye could see.
“Where are we going?” Anastasia asked.
“The bank, we’re going to exchange the money you brought with you for what we use and open an account for you. After that, we’ll buy what you need and deposit the rest in the bank.”
“All of it?” Anastasia asked.
“No, just most of it. It’ll accrue interest until you’re back here. Hopefully, you won’t need to dip into it before next year,” she replied. “We use the same system as the British do. It keeps things simple if you need to visit there.” They entered a nondescript door that entered into a much bigger building. They walked over to a table where a scary looking being sat waiting. “Hello, Derivo,” Ivanova announced.
“Hello, Susan, ah, a new student, not wizard-born?” he asked with a grotesque smile.
Anastasia stepped forward. She would clearly need to get used to interacting with non-humans and needed to put her best foot forward, “I am Anna.”
“Welcome, Anna, may I see your money?” he asked politely. She dropped her bag into his open hand. He opened it and carefully counted the contents and writing them onto a piece of parchment. “You see this?” he asked. She nodded her head. “This is how much you gave me and how much the equivalent is. You are getting 200 galleons, 93 knuts, and 50 galleons. Now, for first years will need approximately 5 galleons in change mostly for this. Would you like to open an account?”
Anna nodded, “My name is Anastasia Feodorovna.” She glanced around, but no one looked at her. She sighed in relief. He counted out the equivalent of 15 galleons. Then he carefully bound the rest in a cloth pouch. He sealed it with magic. He looked down another sheet and wrote Vault 209 in another magic on the front of the pouch.
“When we come back he’ll take us to your vault,” Ivanova told her as they exited the bank. “Now, there are 3 kinds of animals that you can bring with you to school: an owl, a cat, or a ferret. You get to choose. That will be the last thing though.”
Anna’s mind was awhirl as they breezed through robes, books, tools, wands (that was a bit of a shock), they picked up a ferret along the way she named Pinky, gathering everything she needed before visiting her Vault. It wasn’t exciting. They walked down a long, dimly lit hallway before she inserted the key into it. It was empty. She knew it would be. She opened her bag and dumped the contents into the middle of it.
Anna returned home, excited and diving into her first book. It was time to really begin her education.
1918
Both Yuri and Anna stumbled as they reached the gates of the school. The gates opened quickly and they hurried through. The gates closed behind them. They entered the school and headed to the Headmaster’s office. Headmaster Piotr Estronov awaited them. He sighed in relief, “You did it, Yuri. Good job. Sit.”
Anna collapsed into the chair. All the relief flowed out of her as she suddenly made a horrible realization. “They’re dead, aren’t they?” Piotr nodded his head. “What about Pinky?” she asked. A small body bounded up her dress and cuddled under her chin. “What? How?”
“When you went back home one of our witches went with you. When you were moved, she grabbed your stuff and brought it here.” He watched as she stroked the small animal. “Go to your dormitory, it hasn’t changed. You have some decisions to make, and you need some rest.”
“Can I have some help from the House Elves. I have some stuff in my underclothes that need to be picked out and stored,” Anna asked.
“That can be arranged. You want them in your vault?” Anna nodded. “We have a few weeks to figure this out. What are they?”
“Gems,” she replied.
“Good choice. The bank will easily buy them for a good price,” he sighed. “I’m so sorry, Anastasia. We’ll have the Healer come in and check you out to make sure you’re healed. You may consider going to England and transferring to Hogwarts. They have an excellent education system, and St Mungo’s is top notch.”
She reached the Azure Court and stumbled into her dorm. She changed into her nightwear carefully. She laid her clothes onto a chair and flinched as three house elves popped into the room. They pulled out her corset and underclothes carefully they quickly were discussing the best way to remove the gems. “Don’t worry, miss, we’ve got this,” the oldest told her, patting her hand. They popped out of the room as she snuggled down into the comfortable bed. Her quiet sobs filled the air as Pinky rejoined her as did her friends’, Ellia and Courtney’s, cats. Doing their best to comfort the newest orphan.