"Witches and Wizards of London,
It's a dangerous world these days. Dark wizards are returning, and people are trying to make things unsafe for the innocent citizens of our great city.
That's why the Ministry of Magic is now introducing our latest and greatest security measure: The Watchful Eyes!
We'll be watching everywhere - every street, every store, every house, making sure no stone is left unturned when it comes to your safety. We care about you, and we want to make sure you're able to live a safe and happy life!
Remember, you're always secure beneath The Watchful Eyes!
- September 24th, 2000"
The Hogwarts Express was alive and buzzing with energy, as it was every year when they left for school. Children were laughing and squealing, the first years giggling anxiously while the second years strutted around like they were running the show. Third and fourth years were more quiet and subdued, while the fifth and sixes were chattering excitedly between each other.
And the seventh years, Rose Weasley included, were exhausted.
They had done the same thing six times before - boarded the train, talked with friends, and anxiously awaited their arrival at the school. It had lost its magic, the long train ride to Hogwarts, and the majority of them had nearly fallen asleep before the train had even pulled away from the station. Rose was a member of the minority, reading a muggle novel her mother had given her while Scorp snored obnoxiously loud with his head in her lap. Same as every year before.
Ever since The Watchful Eyes had come around, more and more people had felt safe sending their children to Hogwarts, so the population of the castle had nearly doubled in size from the time her father had gone to school. There hadn't been a dark wizard attack in years, since all of them were captured and sent off to Azkaban before they could go through with their plans. Some called it a brilliant system - others, like her friend Jeyne, called it a terrible invasion of privacy. Rose was indifferent either way, as long as no one tried to ship her off to the dementors.
Jeyne was unusually quiet on the bench across from her, Rose noticed about ten minutes after the train had begun it's journey. Her best friend wasn't the silent type - blonde, beautiful, and filled to the seams with energy, quiet was hardly a word in her vocabulary. But on that day the girl hadn't said a word other than 'hello', and she knew something was seriously wrong.
Closing her book, Rose gave her a curious glance. "You okay?" she asked warily, not wanting to upset her. "Normally you'd be bouncing off the walls right now. What's going on?"
Her friend hardly seemed to hear her. Playing with a loose thread on her sweater, Jeyne's face showed no emotion other than a quick flicker of worry in her eyes. Remaining silent, Rose studied her face, hoping to find some kind of clue in her blue eyes. But there was nothing but the slightly bit of pain under the cold blue, no hint as to what could be hurting her. Finally, she looked up, hardly meeting her friend's eyes.
"They took him," she said softly, looking around to make sure no one was listening. "The Watchful Eyes, I mean. They took Ian." Rose's face blanched, a feeling of dread washing over her. Ian was her friend's boyfriend, a sweet, soft-spoken boy who wouldn't hurt a fly. She thanked Merlin The Watchful Eyes weren't The Watchful Ears as well, because she could nearly feel a string of curses rising up her throat.
"Why?" she managed to choke out, unable to comprehend what she had just heard. "What did he do?"
"Nothing!" Jeyne screamed, and both girls quickly glance to Scorpius' still-sleeping form to make sure he hadn't woken. A war could go on in his bedroom and he wouldn't wake, Rose swore. "He didn't do anything, Rosie. They said he was 'associating with dark forces' but he wouldn't. I know he wouldn't."
The Eyes don't lie, she had wanted to say, but the look of pain in her friends eyes made her keep her mouth shut. Reaching across, she grabbed her friend's hand and gave it a quick squeeze. Best just to comfort her and help her forget it.
"They'll let him go," she said simply, even though Rose knew deep down it was a lie. "They'll see he's innocent, and they'll send him back to school. The Watchful Eyes are good people, Jeyne. They're trying to help us, not send the innocent to prison." Her friend didn't looked convinced, but thankfully she let the conversation go.
For the rest of the train ride they chatted while Scor slept, and Jeyne seemed back to her old self by the time the train pulled up to Hogsmeade station. That was, of course, until her boyfriend awoke and gave Rose a soft kiss before grabbing their trunks. She could see the pain flash once more in her friend's eyes, but it was gone as soon as they were off the train.
The station was a sea of people as they got off the train, everyone pushing their way through towards where Hagrid stood with his lantern. It was at least ten times louder than it had been on the train, people screaming and shouting in anticipation to get to the castle. It seemed like everyone was excited - even Scorpius, who was usually indifferent about everything, had a bright smile on his face like a kid in a candy store.
Rose, however, couldn't help the feeling of dread that sunk in her stomach as she looked up at the castle.
Secure beneath The Watchful Eyes, she reminded herself, but this time the words brought more fear than comfort.
Safe.
A/N: sooo what did you think? this was just a quick prologue/intro into the story, and if you guys like it enough I'll continue on with longer, more detailed chapters.
the story is based off of London's "secure beneath the watchful eyes" posters, so I don't own the phrase.