DISCLAIMER: Not mine! Only Cassandra and the plot belong to me, the rest
belong to J.K. who is currently miles away counting her sickles!
CHAPTER ONE
It was a dark, damp and utterly depressing night and Carrigana Blake felt completely exhausted as she trudged through the seemingly endless forest which bordered the grounds of Hog warts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After being constantly on the move for three weeks, with only infrequent stops in which she could grab a couple of hours sleep, every step felt like a challenge for her endurance. Yet she continued, knowing that if she did not the death eaters who hunted her would not hesitate to pounce should she falter. Her only hope was to reach the security which the school offered and to present her case to the one man she respected above all others; Severus Snape.
It was hard to believe how much a life could be changed in such a small space of time. A little over a month ago Carrie's life had been wonderful. She had been all set to move to the muggle world and embark on a career of professional photography. Wizard photos didn't appeal to her with their ever moving images. What she treasured was the ability of muggle cameras to immortalise a single moment in time for future generations to see, to allow them an opportunity to glimpse, if only for a moment the realities of a life they may never experience. It was not to be however.
As she had prepared to leave for the muggle world, a deatheater attack began on her neighbourhood. Curses flew in every direction, buildings were reduced to ashes, people ran screaming for their lives and above it all an unnaturally sinister laugh filled the air turning fear into panic... And then everything went dark and when the young woman awoke she was in a dusty room surrounded by the hooded figures who had so completely changed her life.
Carrigana shook her head suddenly, as if by this simple gesture she could remove all memory of the torture which had followed, and then a huge structure could be seen through the trees and she paused as feelings of relief and hope surged through her. Her destination was finally within her grasp.
"Hogwarts" she breathed and with renewed determination she made her way up the hill which led to the castle. Although she was beginning to feel safe she did not let her guard down. Moving as silently as the shadow she resembled with her heavy cloak pulled tightly around her shoulders she continued onwards. Finally she reached the massive wooden doors and, taking a deep breath, she pushed them open and stepped inside.
The Entrance Hall was warm and well light. Tears of relief filled the young woman's brilliant blue eyes but she did not allow them to fall. Instead, after several deep calming breaths, she made her way to the large hall to her right from which she could hear a cheerful stream of voices.
Carefully she peered into the Great Hall and caught her breath as she saw rows upon rows of young faces all smiling and laughing, utterly at ease in their surroundings and Carrie could not bring herself to disturb their peace with her sudden appearance. Unsure of how to proceed she leant back against a nearby statue and closed her eyes.
An impatient chirp caused her to open them only seconds later and as she did so she came face to face with a gloriously plumed scarlet and gold phoenix who, with its inquisitive eyes, seemed to absorb every aspect of her before leading her up a hidden staircase into a cluttered but comfortable office.
"You must be a familiar." she said to the bird who now sat on her shoulder as she gingerly took the beautifully upholstered leather chair facing the fire. Once she was comfortable the phoenix moved to her knee, butting her hand with his head in an unsubtle attempt to be stroked, and as she gently ran her fingers through the scarlet feathers on Fawxe's head, the exhaustion of the long run from the deatheaters suddenly overwhelmed her and Carrigana was unable to keep her eyes open.
CHAPTER ONE
It was a dark, damp and utterly depressing night and Carrigana Blake felt completely exhausted as she trudged through the seemingly endless forest which bordered the grounds of Hog warts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After being constantly on the move for three weeks, with only infrequent stops in which she could grab a couple of hours sleep, every step felt like a challenge for her endurance. Yet she continued, knowing that if she did not the death eaters who hunted her would not hesitate to pounce should she falter. Her only hope was to reach the security which the school offered and to present her case to the one man she respected above all others; Severus Snape.
It was hard to believe how much a life could be changed in such a small space of time. A little over a month ago Carrie's life had been wonderful. She had been all set to move to the muggle world and embark on a career of professional photography. Wizard photos didn't appeal to her with their ever moving images. What she treasured was the ability of muggle cameras to immortalise a single moment in time for future generations to see, to allow them an opportunity to glimpse, if only for a moment the realities of a life they may never experience. It was not to be however.
As she had prepared to leave for the muggle world, a deatheater attack began on her neighbourhood. Curses flew in every direction, buildings were reduced to ashes, people ran screaming for their lives and above it all an unnaturally sinister laugh filled the air turning fear into panic... And then everything went dark and when the young woman awoke she was in a dusty room surrounded by the hooded figures who had so completely changed her life.
Carrigana shook her head suddenly, as if by this simple gesture she could remove all memory of the torture which had followed, and then a huge structure could be seen through the trees and she paused as feelings of relief and hope surged through her. Her destination was finally within her grasp.
"Hogwarts" she breathed and with renewed determination she made her way up the hill which led to the castle. Although she was beginning to feel safe she did not let her guard down. Moving as silently as the shadow she resembled with her heavy cloak pulled tightly around her shoulders she continued onwards. Finally she reached the massive wooden doors and, taking a deep breath, she pushed them open and stepped inside.
The Entrance Hall was warm and well light. Tears of relief filled the young woman's brilliant blue eyes but she did not allow them to fall. Instead, after several deep calming breaths, she made her way to the large hall to her right from which she could hear a cheerful stream of voices.
Carefully she peered into the Great Hall and caught her breath as she saw rows upon rows of young faces all smiling and laughing, utterly at ease in their surroundings and Carrie could not bring herself to disturb their peace with her sudden appearance. Unsure of how to proceed she leant back against a nearby statue and closed her eyes.
An impatient chirp caused her to open them only seconds later and as she did so she came face to face with a gloriously plumed scarlet and gold phoenix who, with its inquisitive eyes, seemed to absorb every aspect of her before leading her up a hidden staircase into a cluttered but comfortable office.
"You must be a familiar." she said to the bird who now sat on her shoulder as she gingerly took the beautifully upholstered leather chair facing the fire. Once she was comfortable the phoenix moved to her knee, butting her hand with his head in an unsubtle attempt to be stroked, and as she gently ran her fingers through the scarlet feathers on Fawxe's head, the exhaustion of the long run from the deatheaters suddenly overwhelmed her and Carrigana was unable to keep her eyes open.