This story takes place at the same time as Harry Potter's. Please feel free to leave a review, as this is my first story. Don't be afraid to give critique or suggestions/requests for future chapters.
Piper's thoughts churned violently, memories coming just within her grasp, only to vanish when she tried to access them. Screams echoed through her mind, fading gradually to be swiftly replaced with more bloodcurdling, haunting cries. She was trapped in an endless cycle of darkness and pain, and the more she tried to wake up, the tighter it grasped her.
A new voice suddenly broke into her nightmare, gently calling her name, urging her to wake up. But the screams soon drowned it out, consuming her mind again.
Piper awoke, drenched in sweat, the sounds of screaming still ringing through her ears. Anna, her adoptive mother, stood over her, wand raised. She slowly lowered it when she saw Piper open her eyes.
"Mom?" she gasped, her breathing ragged and uneven.
"You're awake, at last," Mrs Bailey noted, sounding concerned. "I had to charm you to get you to stop-" she cut off abruptly, but Piper knew what she had almost said.
"Screaming?" Piper finished, sitting up and hugging her knees to her.
Mrs Bailey frowned. "Are you all right, dear?"
Piper took a deep breath, calming herself down and trying to clear her mind. "Yeah, yeah. And Piper is fine."
"Sorry, d-" Mrs Bailey cleared her throat as Piper shot her a look. "Sorry, Piper. Well if you're feeling okay, come down for breakfast. We have to leave in an hour."
Piper sat for a moment, confused, trying to remember where they were going. Diagon Alley, of course! She couldn't believe she'd forgotten. But then again, forgetting today's plan felt like nothing compared to forgetting an entire nine years of your life.
An accident two years ago had left her with memory loss and a long burn on her left cheek. The accident had also left her parents missing, or dead. Piper liked to assume the former. She could think of so many happy endings when there was a possibility of her parents being out there somewhere, living and breathing, probably trapped somewhere far away but desperately searching for her.
Mr and Mrs Bailey had adopted her and had been trying to help her unlock her memory ever since but had only been able to help her recall the basics, nothing about her parents or the life she had had with them. In her dreams, she caught flashes of faces and voices that felt familiar, but couldn't figure out why.
A new voice had penetrated her nightmare just now. Though many of the voices she heard ignited pangs of longing, this one had made her feel as if tiny pins were pricking every inch of her body.
"PIPER! HURRY UP! We have to leave in twenty minutes!"
Piper sprang off the bed, angry at herself for allowing her mind to drift so far. She threw on some clothes and combed her ashy hair, then snatched up her Hogwarts letter and her black beaded bag full of gold provided by the Ministry of Magic.
Dashing down the stairs three at a time, curls bouncing, Piper skidded into the main room. Skye had a handful of Floo powder and was standing by the fireplace."Okay, let's go," Piper panted, winking at Skye.
Skye smiled back at her, but Piper didn't miss the fact that Skye's eyes had lingered on her burn, even if for a moment. She tried not to let it bother her. People did it all the time. It really wasn't that hideous of a scar, but it was bad enough that no one seemed to be able to resist staring at it once in a while.
"Oh, Piper, glad you could make it," joked Mr Bailey, passing her the pot of acid green powder. Piper grabbed a handful and waited for her turn to leave.
Skye went first, throwing the Floo powder into the crackling flames. Immediately the fire roared to life, emerald green and almost as tall as Piper. Skye shouted "Diagon Alley!" and was gone.
Piper had only traveled once by Floo powder and wasn't too thrilled about the idea of doing it again. Reluctantly, she stepped into the vibrant flames, shouted her destination, and began to spin.
She knocked her elbow painfully and tumbled out of the flames, her hair quite literally ashy. Skye helped Piper to her feet, and they both tried their best to clean themselves off while they waited for Mr and Mrs Bailey.
Skye tried her best to make Piper laugh as they sat together. Piper appreciated Skye's boundless energy and positive outlook on everything. Her adoptive sister was the closest Piper had to a friend, and she admired her more than anyone in the world.
Skye was tall, athletic, and stunningly beautiful, at least to Piper. She had waist-length brown waves and sparkly blue eyes that reflected her name. Everyone wanted to be Skye's friend. Nobody could help but love her.
She kept Piper entertained while they waited for their parents to figure out where to go first. After much debating, the family finally headed for the robe shop.
They stepped inside the cool shop to be immediately greeted by a rush of cool air and a friendly voice. Madam Malkin, the owner of the store, quickly ushered Piper and Skye over to a corner of the room and stuffed a large pile of robes in each of their hands.
As Madam Malkin was measuring Piper and trying on some of the plain black robes, an electric yellow set of robes caught Skye's eye.
"Ooh, can I get those instead?" she pleaded, pointing at them.
"Heavens no!" chuckled Madam Malkin. "Those were made especially for Mr Ludo Bagman. He won't appreciate you taking them to school."
Skye huffed, examining her stack of drab robes. "We've got to turn these yellow when we get to Hogwarts," she whispered to Piper.
"I might be able to whip up a spell," agreed Piper, making a mental note to study color-changing charms when she got home.
Piper had an uncanny knack for inventing her own spells, which she suspected she must have gotten from her birth parents. Though she'd had limited time with a wand since she had to 'borrow' one of her parents' wands when they were in the restroom, she had still been able to produce some creative new spells. This included one that made every book in the house begin to fly around uncontrollably, which had earned her a mess to clean up and a scolding.
After purchasing a set of robes, pointed hats and everything else they needed for their uniform, they hurried away to Flourish and Blotts.
A squat little witch with a mane of electric pink hair flitted over to the group. "Second year?" she piped in a cartoonish, squeaky voice.
"First actually," Skye replied, seeming pleased that the clerk had mistaken her for a twelve-year-old.
"And you, too?" The pink-haired woman turned to Piper, but as she opened her mouth to continue speaking she faltered for a moment, finally spotting Piper's burn.
Piper brushed her curls over it self-consciously. There was an agonizing silence, lasting only for a second or two but feeling like forever to Piper.
Then Skye cleared her throat and addressed the clerk. "We need Magical Theory, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Magical Drafts and Potions…"
The clerk gathered herself. "Yes, yes. I have everything on your list right over here," she chimed, leading them over to a large display on the far side of the store.
Skye thanked her breezily and gave Piper's arm a squeeze as they followed the clerk.
A few minutes later they left the store, arms laden with books, quills, and ink. Skye had discovered a bewitched ink that changed color as you wrote with it, and had bought it while their parents weren't looking.
"You two head over to Ollivander's and get your wands, okay?" Mrs Bailey gave them both a handful of galleons. "We're going to get the rest of your supplies."
Piper nodded. She and Skye made their way through the busy streets. Everyone seemed to be in a rush today, and it relieved Piper because hardly anyone had a second glance for her burn.
When they stepped into Ollivander's, it appeared to be empty. A ghostly tune floated from somewhere in the back room, sending chills down Piper's spine. She shrank back into the corner of the room, while Skye stepped forward boldly and yelled, "HELLO?"
The glow of two glassy orbs suddenly caught Piper's attention, growing brighter as they approached. She realized that it was Ollivander, his eyes huge like moons. "No need to shout," he said, an eerie edge to his voice. Piper shivered again.
He took a moment to look over both the girls. "Bailey," he nodded to Skye.
Skye grinned. "How did you-"
"You look just like your mother. She favored a wand of beech and dragon heartstring," interrupted Ollivander, pulling a long tape measure from a pocket in his robes.
His eyes fell on Piper. "And you."
"I'm adopted," Piper said quickly.
"Ah." Piper was grateful that he casually overlooked her burn, his eyes instead coming to rest level with hers. "Your eyes. Striking. I've only known one other with eyes that silver in my lifetime."
"Yes, they're very pretty," snapped Skye impatiently. "But can we get wands now?"
Ollivander strode towards the rows and rows of boxes, placed precariously on haphazard shelves. He slid out several boxes and placed them on a chair next to Piper.
"Take one of the wands and give it a wave," he instructed the girls. Skye selected a skinny birch wand while Piper took one of holly.
They waved them together. Piper's made Ollivander's hair stand on end, and Skye's did nothing at all.
"No, no," muttered Ollivander, snatching the wands from the girls and replacing them with a new pair.
"Aw, I liked the birch one," complained Skye, disappointed.
"Maybe so, but the wand chooses the wizard, Miss Bailey." Ollivander grabbed several more boxes off the shelves.
They spent a grueling ten minutes trying out wand after wand when Skye finally shrieked with delight as a stream of yellow and red sparks exploded from the tip of the wand she was holding.
"Ah, thirteen inches, springy, pear," Ollivander fingered the wand lightly. "A core of dragon heartstring."
Skye handed him the galleons and sat admiring her new wand while Piper tried out more. Finally, Piper's wand shot a jet of rainbow light and Ollivander nodded, satisfied.
"Ten and a half inches, supple, cherry, unicorn tail hair," Ollivander informed her, twirling the delicate wand in his hand. "I don't make many cherry wands," he told Piper.
"Ooh! It's gorgeous, Piper!" Skye crooned.
Piper grinned, sliding the wand into her jeans pocket. "Come on, we'd better catch up with Mom and Dad."