2 months ago.
"Find her!" The dark lord hurled a table across the room and slaughtered three more death eaters with a flick of his wand. Absolute rage consumed his entire body, ready to let out on anyone or anything in his way. The house was crumbling to dust. One wall was blown apart, another was being eaten by fire licking up the side. The cloaked lord roared in frustration.
"Severus." Voldemort loomed in front of an expressionless man. "You will find her. And you will bring her back to me. Do. You. Understand?" He spoke in a terrifying whisper.
"Yes, my lord." The man said quite calmly, and strode out out the room.
Now, September
I was pressed flat against a stone wall and I could hear the whispers around the corner. I stayed hidden in the darkness, listening intently.
"Have you caught any word of her?" Severus Snape. I recognized his voice. He had been the only one decent to me, but it seemed even he was on the chase.
"If I had, would I be talking to you now?" Bellatrix hissed. I shuddered and pressed myself as flat as possible against the wall. The woman still struck fear in me, just by hearing her voice. She had always hated me, jealous of the attention he showered me with. Not that I was very fond of her anyway...
"Let's continue elsewhere. She wouldn't come to King's Crossing." Snape said tiredly. I heard footsteps leading away, along with a few choice words from Bellatrix.
I exhaled with relief and relaxed my posture. Pushing my auburn hair from my face, I tried to make myself look like I hadn't slept in a bush the past two months. I brushed some dirt from my knee, and tried to wipe off the blood from my arm. Deeming I was as presentable I was ever going to be, I stepped out from the shadows and into the light of the bustling station.
People were hurrying everywhere and thankfully no one seemed to notice my sudden appearance or my dirty clothes. Most seemed to be muggles but I definitely spied more than one child carrying something unusual like an owl or a large frog. I watched these students disappear through a brick wall, flanked by their parents.
With a nod, and a quick mental pep talk, I ran toward my goal, lugging my suitcase behind me. Platform 9 and 3 quarters. As I approached, I laughed the first genuine laugh in months, and disappeared through the stone wall, invisible to the muggle's around me.
I came out the next side, and my whole face broke out in a grin. It was exactly how I imagined it would be. Concerned parents giving their kids words of advice, first-years looking terrified, and a big, gleaming red train waiting to take me to safety. To take me away from him. Two months of running, hiding, and buying supplies from dirty second-hand stores, I was finally ready. To go to school.
I laughed at myself, this is how an 11 year old would be acting! But at almost 16, I still couldn't suppress my excitement. I think the thing I was looking forward to the most was sleeping in an actual bed.
Practically skipping, I jumped on the train and searched for a place to sit. Students were busy hugging, and talking to their friends they haven't seen since last year. The train was cramped and slightly uncomfortable, with people everywhere. I kept my face down, suddenly nervous. I barely ever spoke to people my age and beng around so many made me feel like a fish out of water. I desperately looked for an empty compartment. All were full. Groaning I picked a random one, and slipped inside.
"Hey, um do you mind if I sit with you? All the others are full." I blurted out, still keeping my gaze locked on the floor. I finally peered up and tried to look pitiful so they would be more tempted to say yes. The red headed boy spoke first.
"Of course!" He said cheerily. "My name's Ron. That's Hermione and this is Harry." Oh shit. Harry as in harry potter? As in his Harry? With a glance at his scarred forehead, I confirmed this to be the truth. He was more attractive than I had expected. From the way my father described him, I had expected a weak, scrawny, tiny boy. But Harry was none of those.
"Nice to meet you all." I stammered, not meeting Harry's eyes. I sat down abruptly, next to the red head. Trust me to pick this compartment. My cheeks burned and I wanted desperately to run, but that would be too suspicious. Taking deep breaths I tried to force myself to calm down. You don't exist, I chanted in my head, no one knows you. Okay. I could do this.
"I haven't seen you before." Hermione said curiously. "But you're much older than a first year. Who are you?" This girl had wavy golden brown hair and spoke like a teacher. The way she was staring at me so intently made me want to get up and leave immediately. I couldn't do this.
I swallowed, and tried recited the story I had prepared. "My name's Grace. I'm a sixth year actually. But this is my first year at Hogwarts."
"We're all sixth years too! But what do you mean? Where were you before?" Ron asked, tilting his head to the side like a puppy would do.
"I transferred schools. I'm from the states." I closed my mouth and refused to say anymore on the subject. My american accent was flawless, much to my pride, but I still had trouble conversing with others. I always felt as though they could see right through me, to my deepest secret. I could feel Potter's eyes on me, but I didn't look up to meet them. I knew I had my father's eyes. Harry would see. Harry would know.
The train gave a loud whistle and then I felt us moving. I exhaled a breath I hadn't realized I had been holding, and settled back into the chair. There was no stopping me now. No way he could get me here. I was safely on a train protected by teachers, heading to a school that could easily be called a fortress. Relief flooded my mind.
"Wow, so you don't even know what house you're in, do ya Grace?" Ron inquired. He had kind eyes and a carefree manor about him. I liked Ron.
"Nope. I guess I'll just have to get sorted with all the first years." I said with a slightly forced laugh. "What house are you all in?" I already knew. But I asked anyway.
"Gryffindor." Harry said, still looking into my face as if trying to solve a puzzle. I prayed to god he would never make that connection.
"I hope I'm with you guys," I said honestly, looking down at my shoes. "But Slytherin sort of runs in the family." What an understatement.
"You can choose you know." Harry said quietly. I glanced up at him. "You can ask the sorting hat to put you in whichever you choose. At least, that's what I did. It wanted to put me in Slytherin."
"I think I'll try that." I said with a shy smile. It was rather nerve-wracking to be sitting across from the boy-who-lived. The boy who until recently, I had hated with all my heart. I just prayed to whatever God was out there, that he would never find out who I was.
The rest of the train ride past in a blur. We all talked for hours. They told me about their adventures throughout the years, and I told them a few of my own. They told me about the secret passageways and Hogsmeade, and by the end of the trip, I had made friends. Okay maybe not friends just yet; acquaintances. But it was getting there. I felt pretty proud of myself. It appeared that Harry did not recognize me, or if he did suspect something, he kept it to himself. Words came easier, even if they were all lies, and I found myself feeling relaxed around them.
We exited the train together, still chattering excitedly about my upcoming sorting. I could see the castle looming in the distance and my nerves were getting the best of me. I couldn't wait to walk through those doors.
"You'll be in Gryffindor for sure." Hermione said, patting my arm in encouragement. I tried to smile, but I think my nerves turned it into a grimace. It felt weird to be talking to people again; to laugh and smile again.
"Hey Weasley! Still wearing hand-me-downs, I see?" A voice shouted from behind us. We all turned to look and saw a blonde boy walking behind us. My stomach dropped. It was the Malfoy boy. He had his green Slytherin tie hanging loosely around his neck, and his white-blonde hair was in need of a haircut. He looked so much like his father.
His eyes caught mine for a moment and I looked away quickly. My heart started sprinting and I'm pretty sure it looked like I was having a panic attack. He doesn't know you, I told myself, you're a secret. No one knows. No one knows. The boy came closer.
"Ah screw off Malfoy!" Ron shouted back. The blonde boy laughed obnoxiously and sauntered away, turning around once more to glance at me before continuing with his friends. My heart speed returned to normal. I was really losing it.
"You okay?" Harry asked looking concerned.
"Fine, fine." I said nonchalantly with a wave of my hand. If only that was true.
Stepping into Hogwarts was like stepping into a dream. Moving marble staircases, floating candles everywhere, casting dancing shadows along the wall. Countless paintings everywhere I looked, and they looked back with moving eyes. Ghosts flourished around the room, welcoming the students back. Without my consent, a bubbly peal of laughter escaped my lips. It was all just so perfect. I felt at home.
I was following Harry, Ron, and Hermione when we were stopped by an old man with a white beard as long as his belt. Though I had never seen him before, I realized this must be Dumbledore. They way he spoke about him, I pictured him to be a warrior; not a cheerful old soul.
"Harry, Ron, Hermione. Welcome. Now who is your friend here?" He asked lightly, his eyes twinkling.
"I-I'm Grace." I said looking down at my shoes.
"Grace. Why don't you come with me, and we'll get things figured out. And the three of you go off to the feast!" He suggested, though it seemed more of an order than a suggestion.
"Bye Grace!" "Bye!" "See you around, okay?" They waved and walked toward the Great Hall. I was alone with Dumbledore now, as everyone had filtered into the large room for dinner.
"To my office, shall we?" he asked kindly and offered me his arm. I took it hesitantly, and strolled with him through the castle.
...
Seated in an old chair in his office, my eyes could not stop finding things to look at. Portraits of previous headmasters, various magical knick-knacks, a giant globe, and was that- a phoenix? I was so lost in my observation I almost didn't hear him when he spoke to me.
"Grace. This is your first year here correct?"
"Yes."
"Why didn't you come before?"
I twirled my hair anxiously. I figured I couldn't give him the lie about switching schools because that would bring around a whole new set of questions. I settled on something vaguely close to the truth. "Family problems."
"Ah. So you are a runaway, or am I mistaken?"
He seemed to be asking for mere curiosity purposes, instead of wanting to send me back. So I reluctantly whispered, "Yes, sir. Please don't make me go home."
Dumbledore chuckled and said, "I think we have room for one more. Would you care to be sorted?" He held a large, wrinkly, old witch hat in his hand. I nodded nervously.
He placed it on my head, with what seemed to be almost caution. He looked at me with great interest, as though he was just as concerned with the outcome as I was. Trying to ignore his unnerving stare, I closed my eyes and felt a new conscience enter my mind. It was strange, but not frightening.
"Well, well. What do we have here hmmm?"
A tired voice entered my mind. He sounded like an old professor; someone who had been teaching the same class year after year but still enjoyed it every time. Remembering what Harry said, I tried to send the hat Gryffindor messages. I filled up my mind with yearning to be in Gryffindor.
"Gryffindor eh? No doubt you would be great. There is such talent. Yes. Extraordinary talent. Cunning, and clever you are. But where to put you? Your father was a powerful Slytherin...yes. Such power through Slytherin..."
I froze. How did this thing know? Could it tell someone? My hands clenched and unclenched as I tried to stay poised. It wouldn't tell. I was still safe.
"You have something though...better be GRYFFINDOR!" The hat shouted aloud. My whole body relaxed and I let out a huge sigh of relief. My face broke out into a huge grin and I handed the hat back to Dumbledore, who was eyeing me with wonder.
He handed me a Gryffindor tie and said, "You'll do great things Grace. Grace Riddle."
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