The Longest Night
Author's Note: This is a follow up to a Harry Potter fanfiction I once wrote. This sequel however, treats the Potterverse lightly and has different types of magic. All the important characters are my own. Sally-Anne Perks and Charlotte 'Charli/Lottie' Moon are best friends. Sally is a kind-hearted and sensitive eleven year old girl who sustained a magical affliction at the very beginning of the fanfiction with the result that she has green flesh ie green skin and blood. Charlotte is a brash and bossy eleven year old girl who befriended her. They are both in Gryffindor House at Hogwarts. The fanfiction included very loose parallels to the first Harry Potter book, but took place over the course of just one term. In November, the Gryffindor girls confronted and fought two dark witches, 'Phobia' and 'Nausea,' who intended to unleash a magical plague on the school. The dark witches are sisters, but their relationship paralleled that of the Gryffindor girls – Charlotte bosses Sally around a lot. Nausea bossed and intimidated Phobia in a completely shameless fashion. Nausea is very much a female variant on Voldemort... enough said!
The first two chapters are in the first person and the present tense and narrated by Charlotte. Charlotte is the eldest of three sisters. Her younger two sisters are named Vicky and Celeste. It is set on the 21st December, immediately after the Gryffindor girls' first term at Hogwarts.
Chapter One:
There's a light falling of snow outside in the gathering gloom. It's exasperating how short the days are. Hardly better than in Scotland. I leave my bedroom which I had once been so pleased to have all to myself. I had been glad not to share with my sister Vicky any longer. But now I don't share with Sally and I am feeling empty and frustrated. I said I would help with the Christmas tree. I traipse downstairs. Mum and my sisters are decorating the tree, though I am not sure how much Vicky and Celeste are helping. Mum is trailing her wand over the tree creating glistening pink bubbles. She turns as I enter the living room and smiles. "Lottie! There you are darling. You can put the firebird up."
"I want it, mum – let me," whines Vicky shaking her auburn curls. Her voice is really of the pitch to go through my head. As bad as Lavender Brown's.
"Hush Vicky, don't be a selfish girl," mum chides her.
"Yes, shut up your stupid whining Vic," I urge. "Don't we have more sugar canes mum?" I ask, but Vicky breaks out again;
"Mum! Did you hear Lottie...?"
"Come on girls, don't quarrel," sighs mum. "Look, here, have these spare sugar canes." She hands a sugar cane to both of us. I take out the firebird. The jewel bright bird spreads its wings and swoops from my hand and snatches a golden apple from the Christmas tree. It will enact it again every day. The golden apple will grow back soon. I suck on the sugar cane. It's the stripy kind that we only use for Christmas trees.
"Want one," says Celeste holding out a chubby little hand. She has just been sitting and playing with a string of golden tinsel.
"Babies can't have sweets," says Vicky in an annoying, condescending tone.
"Shut up Vicky," I tell her.
"Mum can you hear Lottie, she's being horrible..." I grip Vicky by the shoulders and shake her with a warning to stop whinging. Vicky shoves me. I am shocked; my eyes widen. I never had to put up with this kind of thing during term time. Sally always did whatever I said without wasting time on arguing... Now I can really appreciate how dismal things are without her.
"Girls, stop that," says Mum sharply.
"Yesh, stop that," says Celeste in a passable imitation of a stern voice.
"I'm sick of being back here!" I exclaim. "If Sally were here things would not be so spectacularly boring."
"Lottie!" Mum says and I can see her bottom lip tremble. I decide that it's best to leave the room for a while.
"Come on Celeste, let's go to my room," I suggest, taking my youngest sister by her little pink hand and leading her out of the room.
"Let's," agrees Celeste. When we get to my room I sit on my bed and bounce her on my knee.
"You've really grown," I say fondly and kiss her golden curls.
"I'm sad you've been a' school sissy," says Celeste. I sigh.
"It's not been so bad really," I reply, lost in thought.
"How you make tha' bad witch go 'way?" Asks Celeste suddenly.
"Nausea? That harridan didn't stand a chance against Sally and I." I smile as I reminisce about my best friend. "Nausea won't be making any more trouble. Don't worry Celeste I can protect you from any dark witch."
"You were in Gryffin'or wiv Sally?" Asks Celeste.
"There are other Gryffindor girls. But who cares who they are?" I tell her.
Celeste is becoming restless and slips to the floor. There is another thing I miss about Sally, she never got bored with my company. She always knew when I just wanted to sit quietly or when I wanted to talk or be more active. I lie face down on the bed and watch with half closed eyes while Celeste rifles through my soft toys. "Hey, leave that one," I order, snatching away Sally's old seal. I close my eyes.
And then –
And then... Suddenly a hideous image flashes in front of me. It is a skull framed with filthy hair with rags of flash adhering to it. The eye sockets burn red like glowing coals. I yell and sit up.