Eyes On Fire
Chapter One - To Start a Fire
Shama means 'a flame' , so I guess it's kinda ironic that I would be what I am. We don't know why or how it happened, but that one time, when I was three and I got angry, that's when it started.
My Mum is an amazing cook, and she was baking cookies one morning.
"Cookie?" I had asked her. Being as young as I was, I stuck my hand out, expecting her to give me one.
She shook her head and smiled softly at me, nothing like she does now, and said, "No Shama, not now. Later, they're not cooked yet." She had pet my head and continued mixing the dough with her wooden spoon.
I had looked at her and said more firmly, "Cookie." She just shook her head again, thinking it was some joke, "I want a cookie!" I ended up screaming at her.
I had become so angry, I was shaking. She just couldn't have given me what I wanted, just a small bit of cookie dough, was it too much to ask?
"Don't yell at me," she told me, "You will do as you're told. No cookies until they have cooked and cooled."
I hadn't liked that one bit. I had planned on just poking my tongue at her, but I wanted that cookie so bad, I had stamped my foot and blew a raspberry at her. Unfortunately, it was a bit more than an ordinary raspberry. I had burnt her that day. The hot air that had slipped out of my mouth had shrivelled parts of her skin.
And it's still there. A permanent scar of what I am, and what I can do. A reminder of how much of a monster I am.
You would see me on the street and you would never pick me out of a crowd as being a murderer. But the sad truth, is I am.
Then to make matters worse, strange things have always happened to me. I could do magic. When I was five, and my Mum had gotten better, I had a cat named Jules. He was such a beautiful kitty. But he got stuck in a tree. And my Dad didn't listen to me anymore, so I was upset that I couldn't get him down.
But somehow, he got down to me. I always marvelled how being half dragon had never deterred Jules from being a faithful feline.
I had always done things like that, magic, and the letter in my hand proved it.
This school, Hogwarts, it could be my escape. I could be whoever I wanted to. I didn't have to be that freaky girl who was to be either ignored or tormented, because she dare be born different and must be spurned for the rest of her life. I could be me. Maybe I'll actually have friends, maybe I'll have a social life, and maybe I won't be alone.
I walked up to my Mum who was cooking dinner. "Mum?" I asked attentively.
She looked at me in surprised, having not heard me coming in. Just another part of being half dragon. "Yes?"
"Umm, this school wants me to go there." She looked at me shocked, "It's like a scholarship, I guess."
"Really? Do they… know?" She asked. "You can't go if they don't."
I ruffled through the bunch of papers they had given me, and found the part that Mr Dumbledore had sent in recognition of my 'individuality', as he had called it, and handed it to her.
She read through it swiftly and carefully, and then raised her eyebrows, "Do you want to go?"
"Yes," I replied without hesitation.
"Well then, looks like you're going to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." She said with no amount of enthusiasm. She handed me back the letter, and went back to cooking.
"Thanks…" I left her to her escape, and went to mine.
Books.
I could just read, and read, and read. Reading about History or Math, Fiction or Non-Fiction, I just love to read.
I started the walk to the library in peace.
But then thoughts started to drift in.
Like, boys. Would anyone ever even look at me? Me? With my ugly hair that looks like it's blue, green and black all at the same time? And my orange eyes that just scream monster? Who would even look twice?
I may only be eleven, but I have hopes and dreams too…
I arrive at my heaven. If that Hogwarts School doesn't have a decent library, I may just die of insanity.
--
It's finally September 1st and 10:30am, and I can't be more excited. I've already read through all of the books I bought from Diagon Alley.
A Ministry of Magic official had taken me to Diagon Alley to get my school supplies. The lady at Madam Milkins had been incredibly kind when helping me pick out some clothes. And Mr Olivander had been a bit creepy, but I liked him.
My wand is 11 inches, oak an dragon-heartstring. I'm not entirely sure what that means, but it sounds cool.
I put my bag down next to me. It's a bit crowded.
I feel a bit lonely.
Everyone else has a family to hug goodbye. My Mum drove me here and left without a kiss goodbye, or a 'love you sweetie'. I sigh and shake these depressing thoughts from my mind.
I pick up my duffle bag, filled with my clothes that never seem to fit, and walk towards the train.
Sitting in a compartment all on my own, I feel like I'm drowning in my thoughts.
What if I don't have enough magic? What if the sorting hat sends me into Hufflepuff? Do I want to be scorned as an idiot? Or, as incompetent?
I really don't want to be apart of Hufflepuff, I'll take anything but that.
I wonder if I'll make friends. Will I repel all who meet me? Or will I find someone who shares a common ground? Will I be forever destined to be alone and friendless for the rest of my life?
My thoughts are interrupted by a loud bang from the compartment next to me.
Concerned, I run straight into my door in my haste to see if they were okay, a loud bang echoed down the hall, louder than the one next door. Luckily, instead of my being thrown to the ground unconscious, I was standing there while this dent started to form in the metal door.
I shook my head and opened it and knocked on the one to the side that the noise came from.
I quietly opened the door when no-one replied.
One boy, rather large, was cowering in the corner, two others, one with rather scruffy hair and plain looking glasses, the other with black hair combed to absolute perfection, and one other boy who was kinda skinny looking with sunken looking features that only someone with acute senses, like me, would be able to see.
I closed my mouth which had somehow opened while I was staring shocked at the scene that was before me.
"I can't believe that didn't work. My Dad said that was all I had to do." The one with scruffy hair said.
"Well, your Dad is kind of an idiot, no offence James." the one with perfect hair replied.
"My Dad is not an idiot. He just sees life from a different angle." James, presumably, told him, looking a bit uncertain of his Dad's intelligence.
"Yeah, the angle of an idiot."
The skinny one decided to cut in, "Look, the spell didn't work. You don't even know what it was supposed to do." He glanced at me, "Besides, we have company." He sent me a shy smile, "Remus Lupin."
The one who was cowering in the corner got up, but kept shooting nervous glances at the other two boys, "P-Peter Pettigrew."
The one with the perfect hair shot me a confident smile and strode up to me, or took a large step, as we are in a train compartment, and grabbed my hand and kissed it, "Sirius Black."
My cheeks started to colour, thankfully, I was saved from total embarrassment by the boy wearing glasses, "I'm James Potter."
"Hi."
They smiled at me, but all I could concentrate on was that Sirius was still holding onto my hand.
Remus looked at me amused, "Are you going to tell us your name?"
"And, possibly, what you're doing in our compartment?" James added.
"Shama, my name's Shama Liftire, and… I heard a loud noise, a bang, and wanted to know if you were okay?" I told them as I started to remember what the hell I was doing in here.
Sirius led me over to the seat next to him and sat me down. "Well, we were just trying out this spell, that Jamesie's father told him would do amazing things."
"I guess he meant make loud noises," he paused thoughtfully, "That could be very useful."
Remus looked at him like he'd grown another head, looked like he was about to say something, then thought better of it, and settled with, "Well, I think it was incredibly dangerous of you to do that spell. You didn't even know what it was about to do." He shook his head disappointedly, but I saw a faint smile on his lips.
"Can you do it again? I've never seen magic before, other than when the officials levitated my school stuff when I went to Diagon Alley." I told them.
James was so enthusiastic at getting to show off he did it straight away, "Sinconoras!"
A huge bang went off.
"Oh… I see." I looked at him and then at his wand in his hand; I got up and stood beside him. "See, you need to grip it, but not too hard, see you're gripping it so hard that your fingers are turning white." I giggled and grabbed his hand covering his wand and touched it in its pressure point so it would loosen.
Remus looked on curiously, while Peter just cowered in the corner. "That is amazing." Sirius exclaimed, I turned around and noticed why. I'd pressed a bit too hard on James' pressure point and he now looked like he was in some sort of daze.
"Oops, maybe, I'll just go." I said, backing out slowly.
"No, teach me how you did that." Sirius said, getting up to try and stop me.
"No, I should be getting changed anyway. We should be arriving soon." I stepped out the door and rushed into my compartment.
Was it just me and my over thinking brain, or did I just make some friends?
The castle was beautiful in the dark, even better than the pictures in Hogwarts: A History. As we walked through the double doors led by an old lady with her hair in a bun, I looked around at my peers. Some of them looked nice enough, but I never was one to judge a book by its cover.
We're lead through a hall over to other big double doors; she stops there and gives us some speech about being sorted into houses and them being family, or whatever. I'm not paying attention, I'm looking at those four boys I met on the train who are now smiling and waving at me.
I smile and give them a short wave back.
We are led into the hall. And it looks way better than the book describes. There are four long tables, and another long table facing the rest that's filled with teachers. And there is the Sorting Hat sitting on a stool.
I wait patiently through the beginning of the sorting for my name to be called out.
"Black, Sirius." the lady called. I smiled as one of my friends got up on the stool, and placed the hat on his head. I could see the tension that Sirius held in his arms, the smile didn't fool me, he was scared.
Not even a minute passed when Hat opened up and yelled, "GRYFFINDOR."
There was a shocked silence, then, presumably the Gryffindor table, burst into applause.
I clapped as well, but noticed that no-one at the Slytherin table looked very happy. In fact they were staring at Sirius as though he had just done a very large sin.
Some more names are yelled out as I wait for my name.
Then finally, the lady called, "Liftire, Shama." I started walking towards the hat, sat on the stool and put the Sorting Hat on my head.
"My, my, isn't this a lovely surprise. Being apart of the Dracon bloodline is very rare."
"I'm sorry, what's that bloodline again?"
"Yes, the Dracon bloodline have been very proud Slytherin's for many years. And even though you are loyal, brave, cunning and intelligent, I don't think you will be understood in Slytherin. Although, much good can come from being in Slytherin. What do you think?"
"I guess Slytherin sounds fine?" I asked more than answered.
"Well then, that settles that. Good luck young Dracon, you'll need it."
"SLYTHERIN."
I get up, place the hat back onto the stool and walk towards the table that is clapping politely.
I sit down next to the only other first year that has been sorted so far. "Hi."
She looks at me, I feel as though she is looking straight through me. "Hello."
We turn away from each other and continue to watch the sorting.
"Lupin, Remus." The lady in the bun, Professor McGonagall, called.
I watched as he walked towards the hat, a little afraid. I can't help but want to hug him and tell him everything will be alright. I shake my head, shocked that my thoughts were being so forward.
He placed the hat on his head, and frowned in concentration.
I watched him carefully, trying to guess his thoughts.
But, no matter how I tried, I couldn't guess them. His feelings were all over the place, and his face showed nothing but annoyance. Was the hat being rude to him too?
The brim of the hat opened and yelled out for everyone to hear, "GRYFFINDOR."
The Gryffindor table burst into applause and whistles, Sirius being the loudest. I clapped quietly as well, ignoring the looks sent to me from my own table.
After both James and Peter where sorted into Gryffindor, I lost interest.
I'm pretty much alone in this house, maybe I should try make some friends. They would probably ignore me or call me names; after all, I am just a freak.
The feast is over, and I feel kinda alone.
The other Slytherin's just send me filthy looks, I try to ignore them, but that isn't as easy as you would think it would be.
I followed the Prefects to the common room, noting how we got there so I wouldn't get lost.
The dungeons were dark, but my dragon-like eye sight allowed me to see perfectly. The common room was dressed elegantly in silver and green furnishings. It was one of the most beautiful rooms I have ever seen. The lush forest green carpet, accompanied with silver and black fade walls. You would never be able to tell that the walls were actually brick.
I smile, but then my eyes are pulled towards a huge man trying to get our attention.
"Welcome, my fellow Slytherin's. I'm sure that most of you know this speech by heart, so second year and above may go straight to their common rooms for classes tomorrow." He paused, and the room slowly filtered until there were only eight people left. Four girls and four boys. "Now, look around, these faces shall be your family. The other houses are prejudice against us, so we must stand together. All fights against other Slytherin's are to be in this common room, and nowhere else."
"Now, I am the Potion's professor, so am very busy at times. Do not contact me, down the hall from the common room, unless there is an absolute emergency." He smiled, which actually made him look like a bit of a pig wearing a fake moustache, "Goodnight."
He left through the door. And we were left in silence. And something dawned on me, "But where are our rooms?"
After we had found our rooms, a few daring looks into rooms on my part, we had gone to bed with little to say. Falling asleep before our head could hit the pillows.
The next morning I looked at the three other girls getting ready in silence. I can't shake the feeling that I should say something.
"So, I'm Shama. How was your night?" two of them looked at me funny, including the one that I said hello to last night, but the other looked like she could smile from relief.
"I'm Tistaria, but you can call me Ria if you want. I had to admire your smart thinking the other night. I would've hated to go through all those rooms. You're incredibly… brave." The girls looked at me in horror, "That, or just incredibly stupid."
I smiled at her, 'Thanks… I guess." She smiled back.
We walked together to the Great Hall for breakfast. Thanks to my memory, I could remember the way.
We sat next to each other at the Slytherin table, looking around I remarked, "There isn't many people in this school is there?"
She laughed, "This is just the early risers. Everyone else is still asleep."
I blushed, which clashed terribly with my pale skin, which sometimes had a green tinge to it.
We ate quickly, and by the time we were ready to go the room was nearly full. We got our timetables from one of the prefects, and left the Great Hall for our first class, Charms.
Outside we nearly ran into the same group of boys I had met just the other day.
"Look Sirius, we found some slimy Slytherin's." James said in a rude voice.
"Hmm, I wonder what the evil gits think they're doing. Walking on two feet like that, they're not supposed to even have legs at all." Sirius replied shooting us dark looks. Peter just looked at me with a face full of betrayal, while Remus just looked away and walked into the great hall.
My mind was frozen, they were so nice yesterday, what happened?
"Hi, Sirius, James and Peter. How are you?" I gave them small smiles.
"Eww. It's actually talking to me." I was vaguely aware that Ria was trying to pull me away.
"I'm sorry, what?" They shot me dark looks and walked around us into the Great Hall.
"I can't believe the nerve of him. First, he goes into Gryffindor, now, he was to harass us all the time? Bloody Black." Ria was muttering.
"They were so nice yesterday. What changed?" I had small tears in my eyes.
She noticed and grabbed my arm sadly, "You were sorted into Slytherin."
We walked to the Charms classroom in silence.
End of chapter.
I'm so sorry that It has been longer than I said, I have the next 4 chapters written and everything, but unfortunately, there was something stick in the main computers out box, and the computer was slow and I don't know why but the chapter wouldn't update. I said that in my profile, but I'll reapeat it here. I WILL update again on Saturday and then the Saturday after that as I am going to Coloundra for the week. It's all very exciting. Reviews are appreciated. Have a nice week,
Tashie xo
