Author's Note: I would like to give cover credit to michellemonique on deviantArt.
Audriell knew very well that the only reason her mother had not thrown her from her house was that she was afraid it would be a death sentence. Dria's life was, in that moment, the only thing that could possibly have stood in the way of her mother's anger.
"Audriell! Please, be reasonable. You know what everyone is saying. England isn't safe anymore. You can put off your last two years of school, if you really insist on staying at that blasted Hogwarts of yours. Or I heard that Vanderbilt is a lovely school, and I happen to have a friend who is a relative of the headmistress there."
Really, Dria was almost as astounded as her mum about her insistence on staying in England. But going to America was the coward's way, and she refused to abandon Sara like that. Even before all of this Voldemort's-return nonsense started up, she had managed to get herself into all sorts of trouble. The girl had no sense of self preservation and worse, no ability to defend herself. Did Dria's mom really think Dria would go off to America, knowing that?
"Mother, you know that this isn't about Hogwarts." She sat down on her bed, exhausted. Her trunk was already packed and everything that she wasn't taking with her was already in their new house, the one her father had bought in America. The train would be leaving from King's Cross in an hour. Her mother's desperation was increasing exponentially. Dria was glad for it, as selfish as that was, because it gave her something to focus on other than her own fears.
This year, Hogwarts was going to be different. She knew that. It wasn't going to be a place of brightness and safety, not anymore. This whole country was slowly becoming a war zone.
"I'm just going to be so worried. You must promise me that you'll write every single day. If not, I'll show up at your school, see if I don't."
"I will," Audriell promised for the dozenth time.
Her bedroom door creaked open and her father walked in. "If we don't leave now, you'll miss your train." He turned stiffly away, but she caught a bit of his expression. He looked drained. His usually vibrant red eyes, the identical images of her own, even seemed a little washed out. Dria straightened her shoulders and heaved up my trunk. Someone had to be strong enough to keep up the charade of normalcy around here. That would just have to be her.
Audriell couldn't find Morag anywhere on the train and it was scheduled to depart in two minutes. She made herself put away her watch, knowing that watching it was only going to make her more nervous. She tried to remember the last time that she had heard from him. Was it two days ago? No, that had been his sister's birthday and she remembered him telling her that in lieu of a present, Isobel had asked to borrow his owl for a few days. So was it four days ago? Five?
In any case, it was more than enough time for something dreadful to have happened.
Terry Boot, a close companion of Morag's, was watching Dria with no small amount of amusement. He always treated her like some sort of pet, or else like she was there for the sole purpose of his entertainment. She hated it, but tolerated him for Mo's sake. Besides, Sara was strangely fond of him.
Dria glanced at Sara, who was in the seat to her left. Even now she was leaning forward in her seat, eagerly taking in everything around her. What her eyes fixed on most frequently, though, was Terry.
Just as the train was firing up, the door to her compartment was thrown open, revealing her other best friend, huffing slightly but looking just as well as the last time she had seen him. In the same instant, Audriell had thrown herself off of her seat and at him. He laughed softly but held her just as tightly as she held him. Mo had known that she would be anxious. After all, he had been, too.
Audriell caught a glimpse of Isobel standing behind him, chatting with someone. She recognized the voice and stiffened. Mo released his hold on her and tried to spin her around so that she was safely back in the compartment, but Dria was having none of that. She ducked under his arm and found herself standing face-to-face with her ex-boyfriend, Jeremy Stretton.
Dria bit back a groan. Proudly displayed on his vest was a shining new Head Boy badge. Mo's hand wrapped around her waist, and though Jeremy was looking pointedly only at her eyes, Dria knew that this did not escape his notice. Her closeness with her best friend had, in fact, been a large part of their break up.
"Had a good summer, did you?" she asked, sounding slightly breathless. Isobel was grinning brightly- she always had loved watching encounters like this one. She enjoyed others' discomfort.
"Yeah, I did. Er- how's your fanged geranium doing?" he asked, grasping at the back of his neck self-consciously.
"Its teeth finally grew back in. Thanks for remembering." Jeremy seemed at a loss for what to say next, so he looked desperately at Isobel.
"I suppose I could have mercy on you," she said to him in a faux-whisper before turning to Audriell and her brother. "We'd best be going. See you at the feast!"
They returned to the compartment, sitting side by side, quite close together. Terry, grinning widely, said to them, "That was more awkward than family dinner last Sunday, when my gran mixed up her bunion potion with the soup and served it to the Minister's nephew."
Mo laughed appreciatively. "That's got nothing on what my father did..."
Dria let her thoughts wander while the boys exchanged increasingly disgusting stories. She didn't want to admit it to any of them, but she was starting to get a roiling, nasty feeling in her stomach. One that made her question whether Hogwarts had really been the best place for her this year.