Chapter 1: Aurora Kapranos.
My name is Aurora Draconis Kapranos of the House of Kapranos. I am the last of one of the few remaining pureblood families in England. I am a Slytherin prefect who is at constant odds with my housemates, particularly my fellow prefect, Lucius Malfoy and the Black sisters. I don't really care for Snape, but I hate Malfoy with a passion. He has always asserted that I was a "blood-traitor" (true), and a "Gryffindor in Slytherin's clothing" (possibly).
My only real friend graduated a year ago and has recently begun training to become an auror. We were both outcasts, and we stuck together despite our house rivalries, but now I am quite alone. Damn I miss Alastor. People tend to stay away from me; partially because I'm a prefect and a Slytherin at that; but I'm sure that my heritage as the scion of one of the most ruthless pureblood houses did nothing to help things. However my heritage was far more sinister and bizarre than anyone guessed. I am an animagus. An unregistered animagus, but not necessarily illegal. You see, I am a natural animagus born with the ability. It was through this ability that I would soon become entangled with the Gryffindor Marauders.
The year is 1975, my sixth year at Hogwarts…
Chapter 2: Remus Lupin.
--November 25th, 1975; Hogwarts School of Magic and Wizardry.
"How do you like that Snivellus?" As the taunts floated through the air, I glanced up from my book. It looked like James and Sirius were at it again. As I saw Snape hanging upside down in midair, I couldn't help but wish they would cut it out already. I disliked Snape, sure; but I didn't like seeing him picked on like that.
You should be doing something, a small voice in the back of my mind told me, This is why they made you a prefect. Still, I knew there wasn't anything I could do. If Sirius and James decided to do something, no one could make them stop.
As I went back to my book, I heard a sudden commotion from the crowd, and for a moment I thought that maybe James and Lily had gotten into it again, but then I heard Sirius's angry voice yelling, "He's going across the lake! The little prat's going across the lake!!"
Mere seconds later, I felt something brush my shoulder and heard the rustling of pages. Glancing back up, I saw that the Slytherin prefect, Aurora Kapranos had settled beside me. Kapranos was the same year as I was, and I'd be lying if I said she wasn't attractive in her own strange sort of way. She was tall and thin with abnormally pale skin and angular features that gave her a lean, hungry look. Her hair was jet black, and her pale blue eyes sparkled with a keen intelligence. I would, of course, never consider her as any more than an ally…not openly at least. She was, after all, a Slytherin. Sighing, I glanced at her profile, "That was you, wasn't it?"
Lowering her book, she shrugged and gave me a crooked smile, "Well, I couldn't just leave him hanging there like that. Something had to be done, it was an eyesore!"
At this, I allowed myself to smile back, "You're not bad for a Slytherin, Kapranos."
Almost immediately, her expression darkened, "It's Aurora. Don't ever call me by my family name, Lupin."
I nodded, the fact that she wanted to be called by her first name seemed a good sign, "Fine. You'll call me Remus then?"
She shrugged again, "Fine. Personally though, I prefer Moony."
At those words, a thousand thoughts raced through my mind, but before I could question her, she looked up sharply and muttered something before standing and heading back toward the castle. As she disappeared, it occurred to me what she had just said. Wormtail! my mind screamed, She said Wormtail!!
It was then that I spotted Sirius, James, and Peter coming toward me, mixed looks of anger, curiosity, and suspicion on their faces.
Chapter 3: Severus Snape.
I hated Aurora Kapranos. Not as much as I hated Potter and Black, but close enough. After the ordeal by the lake, I had lurked alone in the corridor. It was bad enough that I had to undergo such frequent ritual torture at the hands of Potter and Black, but to be bailed out by her, by Kapranos! I almost preferred to still be hanging upside down.
As I saw her coming down the corridor, I made a half-hearted attempt to blend into the wall, but she spotted me anyway. Smiling cruelly, she bowed at the waist, "Ah, the Half-Blood Prince! How are you this evening?"
How the hell does she know about that?! my mind screamed angrily. Stepping to one side of her, I narrowed my eyes into a glare and opened my mouth to speak.
Immediately, her features hardened and her eyes seemed to flash yellow. "Hold your tongue Severus!" she hissed, "Someone had to get you out of that mess."
As she passed by, I muttered two words under my breath, "Blood-traitor!" Ignoring me, she kept going, but not before muttering something back at me. Naturally, I thought nothing of it, at least until my tongue began to swell in my mouth. Before I had the chance to react, my tongue forced itself through my lips and wrapped itself around my throat.
Yelling, I scrambled for my wand and just managed to choke out the proper incantation to disperse the jinx. As my tongue slithered back into my mouth and returned to normal size, I heard a voice behind me, "Kapranos got you again, didn't she Snape?"
Not looking back, I kept walking, "Leave me alone Malfoy."
Chapter 4: Sirius Black.
"You just don't get it, do you Moony?" I turned and looked at my friend angrily, "She's a Slytherin for cryin' out loud! And a Kapranos to boot!"
Suddenly Wormtail spoke up, "Well, she c-can't be all b-bad Padfoot. S-she was good friends with a G-gryffindor a while back, and she does h-hate M-malfoy."
At this, I simply exploded, "That's just wonderful!! She must be okay because she was friends with Madcap Moody!!! Are you NUTS?! And besides, everyone hates Malfoy!!"
In a nearby chair, Prongs glanced up, "I think we should get some sleep. Hogsmeade's in a week, and Moony's time of the month is right after that."
I shrugged, "Whatever." As the others filed up the stairs, I grabbed Moony on his way out of the room.
He narrowed his eyes, "Look Sirius, Aurora's not your typical pampered Slytherin pureblood."
I froze, "You're on first name basis with that—that serpent?!" Admittedly, I was rather furious with my friend. He knew how I felt about Slytherins, particularly those of the pureblood variety, and here he was defending one!
"Yes Sirius," my friend replied, "She refuses to be called by her last name."
Taking a deep breath, I looked at Moony hard, "Look Remus. You don't know what you're getting into here! She's dangerous, particularly for someone like you!"
Jerking his arm away from me, Moony looked at me levelly, but there was a glint of the old werewolf madness in his eyes. "Oh I'm sure you know all about the habits of pureblood families, Sirius," he hissed defiantly, "Good night." And then he was gone.
Shocked and a little hurt by my friend's words, I sank back down into my armchair. He really didn't understand. House Kapranos made the Blacks look like bloomin' girl scouts! Nearly everyone knew it, so why should Moony be so angry about me trying to warn him? Hell, none of them understood. I knew the dangers of a Slytherin pureblood better than anyone. Sure Moony had thought she was okay, but he honestly wasn't always the best judge of character.
Sighing, I unfolded the Map. Tapping it lightly with my wand, I uttered the command phrase that would cause it to open.
Yet when I looked at the map, it seemed that everything was still…except a single green dot moving back and forth across the Slytherin Tower's girls' dormitory. Sighing again, I closed the map and went to bed.
Chapter 5: Lucius Malfoy.
You would not think it possible to hate another being so completely, yet at the same time, want them more than you can almost bear. These were among the thoughts I pondered late at night as I lay in bed awake. The click of boot-heels on the floor above mine told me that she was awake as well, pacing the floorboards of the girls' dormitory.
Personally, I found quiet, docile Narcissa Black to be more suitable to my tastes than Kapranos, but the idea of somehow luring her to my side was a rather thrilling one…and now that Moody was gone, I was certain that I would have her before the year was out. Then, and only then, would I kill her…and I would do it slowly, just as she deserved, if only for wasting my time. Once a blood-traitor, always a blood-traitor, and the only good blood-traitor is a dead one.
As far as I knew, she had been in her room since dinner. This information I received from Snape, who had just been hexed by her when I ran into him. Snape was useful, but little more than that. Sure he had skill, but he lacked the guts to use it. Instead he spent his time scribbling in that damned notebook of his.
Suddenly the pacing stopped, and I quietly slipped off to sleep.