Chapter One: The Escape
Draco sat in the dark, as Snape paced about. "Why didnt you kill him? It was your job! The Lord is not happy with this," Snape snarled. Draco looked away, feeling guilty. "Come on, it was..." "Inconvient? Why? Because you'd soil you repuation?" spat Snape. Draco flew up from his chair, and pinned Snape to the wall. "I never wanted to be a Death-Eater. My father ruined my life. I had no choice, unlike you." Snape started to turn purple, and gasped for air. Draco released Snape, and Snape crashed to the floor. Silence filled the room, like a slow, agonizing death. Snape rubbed his now, bruised neck. "I made a promise to your mother, you know what happens if I break it." Draco glared at him and said, "Maybe if you broke the promise, it'd teach you to not make promises!" Draco reached for his cloak. "Where do you think your going, Draco? You can't go anywhere! You're with me! I killed him! Even when you were suposse too!" Snape growled. "I'll go wherever I please." And with that, Draco swept out of the room, leaving Snape sitting in the darkness. Draco looked around, feeling frustrated. His Death-Eater cloak seemed to engulf him, only his eyes glowing from the depths of the hood. "Snape's right, I have no where to go," Draco thought. But he shook his head and started his walk to Diagon Alley.
Nadia looked around, feeling quite dazed and confused. "Bugger, this is what I get for being homeschooled," she said outloud. A small tap on the shoulder made her jump. "Excuse me miss, do you need help?" a young boy asked. Standing in front of her were three teenagers her age, two boys and one girl. Nadia gave a small smile and politely replied "No, I think I've found almost everything, except that is, Flourish and Botts." The boy with red hair pointed behind her and laughed. "Sorry, to laugh, but it's right there behind you." Nadia turned bright red. "Well, I guess the things we miss the most are always the things in front of us, eh?" Nadia said trying to sound cheerful. "Quite right," the girl said nodding. The one who tapped her on the shoulder said, "Oh I'm quite sorry, I forgot to introduce ourselves. I'm Harry Potter. This is Ron Weasley," pointing to the tall, boy with flaming red hair, "and Hermione Granger," nodding to the girl, with curly hair, and a soft, gentle smile on her face. Nadia relaxed. "My name is Nadia Taylor and my aunt has told me so much about you!" Harry tilted his head. "Your aunt? Who is your aunt?" Nadia laughed. "My aunt is Professor McGonagall. Or may I say Headmistress McGonagall? It's a shame to hear about Dumbledor's death." The three teenagers stood there, gaping at her. "Your aunt..is Professor McGonagall?" stammered Ron. Nadia nodded. "Why weren't you here at Hogwarts for the majority of your learning?" Hermione asked. "Oh, when I found out that I was a witch, I didn't take to it quite well. So, I decided that no one else was like me, therefore, I couldn't go in public. My parents tutored me, and during the summers, my aunt helped me catch up to the Hogwarts curriculum. Now, I'm above the Hogwarts curriculum, but my aunt is begging me to come for some reason." At the mention of curriculum, Nadia noticed that Hermione had stiffened. "Something wrong Hermione?" Nadia asked gently. Ron laughed. "Don't worry about her, she's just a show off, doesn't like competition. Thats all." "Oh," Nadia said with a small laugh. Something, or someone, standing in a dark corner across from them, caught Nadia's attention. "Who's that?" she asked. But when Harry, Ron, and Hermione turned, the figure disappeared.
