She sat in the corner closest to the window, her knees up to her chest, exposing her skinny ankles from underneath her robes. Wisps of black hair waved in front of her eyes as the wind from the open window came in. Hearing voices outside her compartment, she looked up, momentarily breaking out of her daydream, then sighed, looking out the window once again. A boy sat next to her. One with greasy, black hair, and an overly long nose. Acne dotted his face, standing out against the white skin. His attention was soley in reading his book, so he didn't notice when three others came in and sat down.
"Whatcha reading, Snivelus? You're so into you're book, I can already see the grease marks all over the page." A boy with messy, black hair sat down next to the boy, pretending to look at the title of the book as if he was actually interested.
"Shove off, Potter." The greasy haired boy said, looking away from his book to glare at the other boy.
"I see you brought a girl with you." The messy haired boy said, gesturing towards the girl by the window, who was watching the two boys with curiosity. "She's just as greasy and slimy as you are. You make a good match." He leaned back in his seat, putting his hands behind his head. The girl's expression darkened as she glared at the boy.
"She's my sister, and you better shove off before I hex that stupid smirk off your face." The other boy snarled, his lip curling as he took his wand out. The messy haired boy raised his eyebrows, momentarily surprised.
"Let's go, James. He's not worth it today." Another boy said, sounding bored. He had dark rings under his eyes, and his eyes were an odd shade of yellow. He blinked, and they turned brown, startling the girl. Her brother was already back into his book, and didn't notice when she gave a small gasp. The other boys, however, did. Their eyes widened in fear.
"She saw." Whispered an incredibly attractive boy with long, black hair. His eyes were wide as all the boys froze. The tired looking boy with the golden eyes stood up and motioned for her to come nearer. She did, though very cautiously.
"You mustn't tell anyone. Please." He begged, his eyes wide with fear. She nodded slowly.
"I wont tell anyone you're a werewolf." She whispered back to him, and his eyes widened even more as he backed out the door to the compartment and ran. The other two boys stared at her for a moment before running and following their friend.
She sat back down, leaning towards her older brother. "Severus? Who were those boys?" He looked up from his book, sighing.
"Some stupid, arrogant prats." The boy, Severus, replied, looking at his sister.
"Names?" The girl inquired, gazing at him expectantly. Severus sighed again, rolling his eyes.
"The messy one is James Potter, the long haired one is Sirius Black, and the werewolf is Remus Lupin." He explained, looking at his book once again, looking up when she gasped softly.
"You know he's a werewolf too?" She looked at him incredulously, her eyes wide.
"Shut up, Samantha." Severus replied, reading his book more quickly, for they had almost arrived at the school. She sighed, looking out the window once again. As they rounded the bend in the train tracks, a magnificent structure came into view. Though it was dark out, the castle was lit up with various lights, glowing brightly around it. Floating lanterns adorned the path the rowboats were to cross, illuminating the lake in a warm, golden light.
Samantha grabbed the handle of the door, just as the train stopped, it's breaks squealing. She was finally at Hogwarts. The magnificent castle she had dreamed about for years was right in front of her, and she was going to be here until the summer. Someone grabbed her arm, dragging her out of the train and onto the platform, shoving her cat and trunk into her arms, which she struggled with momentarily. Then, following the rest of the first years, Samantha put her luggage into a boat, keeping hold of her glossy, black cat. Following the lead of a few first years who seemed to know what they were doing, she proceeded to get into a boat, and then they were off.
They sped through the water silently, the castle in front of her growing larger and more baffling by the second. When they reached the other side of the lake, each trunk and cage on the boats vanished, leaving most of the first years freaked out. Severus told her this would happen, so she wasn't worried. She would get to her bunk, and all of her belongings would already be there. With the rest of the first years, now silent with anticipation, followed Hagrid, the Care of Magical Creatures teacher, into the Great Hall. At the front of the hall stood a stern looking witch, also known as Professor McGonagall, and a rickety looking wooden stool with a tattered hat laid upon it. The sorting hat would sort every first year into one of the four houses; Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Slytherin, and Gryffindor. Suddenly, the hat started to sing.
Oh you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
if you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folks use any means
To achieve their ends.
So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!
Starting at the beginning of the alphabet, Samantha was the last student to be sorted, her last name being Snape.
"Samantha Snape?" McGonagall's voice rang throughout the hall. All eyes were on her as she walked slowly to the front of the room, sitting on the stool. SHe glanced at her brother, Severus, who gave her an encouraging nod. Then, the hat was placed on her head, and she could hear it's thoughts.
Mmm... Interesting... Loyal like a Hufflepuff... Brave like a Gryffindor, too... Very intelligent... would be good in Ravenclaw...Ahhhh...and from a whole line of Slytherins... you would do well in there...mmm... and prideful like a Slytherin too... such a hard decision... which one to pick?... Aha! I see now!
"Gryffindor!" The hat shouted after what seemed like forever. Samantha smiled, looking over at Severus, who glared at her in return. He was in Slytherin, the mortal enemies of Gryffindors. Walking over to the Gryffindor table, she sat, getting a few slaps on the back and a lot of wondering looks from the other houses. It wasn't normal for someone who's whole family was in Slytherin to be put in Gryffindor. It was very odd indeed. The person next to her nudged her with their elbow.
"You an Animagus?" He whispered, and she recognised him as the attractive boy from the train, Sirius Black.
"Yes, I am, Sirius. Why do you ask?" She replied, remembering the day when she became an illegal Animagus.
"Moony's night is tonight and we go out to keep him from hurting anyone or himself." Sirius replied, quietly.
"Moony?" She questioned. She didn't remember anyone called Moony.
"Remus." He explained gesturing to the empty seat on the other side of the table where he should have been sitting. "What's your Animagus?"
"A wolf." She replied, and Sirius raised his eyebrows. "I got bitten when I was a baby. My parents didn't care about me anyway. They don't care about Severus, either." She explained, and he nodded in understanding. She was a werewolf, just like Remus, but she loved her werewolf side. It made her feel powerful, unlike the weak human form she was in.
"I'm a dog. Prongs, or James, is a stag. And our friend, Peter, who usually keeps to himself, is a rat."
"Do you have a nickname?" Samantha asked, intrigued. Only Severus knew she was an Animagus, so meeting some others was very interesting.
"I go by Padfoot. You should also need a nickname since you'll be going with us. We can also help you out when you change." Then, a thought hit him. "Tonight's a full moon. Why aren't you... you know... changing?"
"I have until 10." She said, looking at the clock. She didn't start to get antsy until 9:30, and she already felt more powerful. She blinked, watching Sirius's eyes widen in shock. Her eyes must've changed. They go from deep brown to yellow, like Remus's eyes. She shrugged.
"You're not scared?" He said, in awe. James plopped down on his other side.
"Moony's all good to go." James said, then noticed she was there. He was just about to say something insulting, when Sirius put a hand over his mouth.
"She's one of us." He hissed in his ear, and James looked confused.
"You're in Gryffindor? You're an Animagus?" He asked, quietly, a look of wonder sparkling in his eyes.
"Yes. And a werewolf." Samantha replied, brushing the hair from her eyes, looking at the plates heaped with food that had appeared on the table. They must have missed the opening speech.
James looked at Sirius uneasily, then asked, "Why haven't you changed?" in a hushed voice.
"I have until 10." She whispered back, twiddling her thumbs. She was getting restless, and decided that this was the time to have a chat with the Headmaster. She excused herself, and walked to the staff table. Spying the Headmaster at the middle of the table, she walked over and cleared her throat.
"Excuse me, Professor, sir?" Samantha asked politely, and the old man looked up from his food, wiping his mouth on a napkin.
"What can I do for you, my dear?" He asked, his low voice calming her nerves.
"I need to speak with you privately. It's urgent." She said as calm as she could, glancing at the time. It was now 9:45. She had 15 minutes. Would she make it? The Headmaster looked at her once, then nodded, standing up.
"Meet me right outside the hall." He replied, and was gone. So, she walked to the door, and exited it quietly, spotting the Headmaster right away. She walked over to him.
"You're a werewolf." He stated. It wasn't a question, just a statement. She nodded. "You want permission to go with the boys to the Shrieking Shack to change every full moon, and you only have 10 minutes." He was right again. She nodded, twiddling her thumbs. Oh, how she longed to tear the man's throat out, and rip every limb off to eat it piece by piece. She bit her lip. She had to stop thinking about that. "You feel the urge to rip me apart." He stated again.
"Just let me go." She growled menacingly. He smiled, satisfied, and nodded.
"You may go every full moon. Thank you for asking me. I will alert the teachers so they are aware that you will be late for class tomorrow and the day after every full moon." With that, he was gone again. She sighed. This was going to be one heck of a night.