Disclaimer: I am not J.K Rowling, I don't own Scholastic, Bloombury Publishing, nor do I run Warner Bro. People, if I had that type of brilliance, job, or money, I highly doubt I'd be writing FANFICTION about a story I adore, and a group of people I admire. This is a way to express myself without whiplash from cruel people about my original works. Let me tell you something, I've tried to publish before, but it isn't easy. But I won't give up! Until then, I'll keep up with fanfiction when it strikes my fancy.
Hyacinth ended up buying her sister a bunch of things (ahem, books) to make up lying to her. A price the redhead was all too willing to pay. Especially when Heather found a spell to remove the trace from their persons from an old tome. Of course they had to remove it within Diagon Alley, in the same alleyway that Heather had deaged herself in. The girls quickly got the hang of basic spells, knowing they would surprise their classmates with how well they were doing.
"Hyacinth, come on, it's nine! The train leaves at eleven!" Heather whined, shaking the girl. "I want food. You know I can't cook. Besides, we have perishables that we need to finish before we leave." Green eyes opened followed by a groan.
Both girls were dressed, and eating a feast before half-past nine. Lunches lay packed in Japanese style on the counter. Stasis spells long since placed on them to keep everything hot and fresh. The girls were practically lethargic as they left the flat, trunks shrunken and strapped to a leather bracelet. Both were thankful that Hyacinth had enough money to completely pay off the flat. It was theirs, and it didn't matter that they wouldn't be there. Thankfully it was goblin ran, so no one was going back on their word. On their way out, they scooped up their cats.
The moment they entered King's Cross Station, they were met with a problem.
"How do we get to Platform 9¾?" Heather demanded, rubbing her forehead. Hyacinth was pinching her nose in agreement. They overheard the word muggle, and looked around, searching. It was a group of redheads with trunks, and an owl.
"Now, what's the platform number?" said the boys' mother.
"Nine and three-quarters!" Piped a small girl, also red-headed, who was holding her hand. "Mum, can't I go..."
"You're not old enough, Ginny, now be quiet. All right, Percy, you go first." The girls watched closely as the oldest of the four boys ran at what they had thought was a solid wall just moments before. If they had blinked they would have missed him disappearing through it. "Fred, you next."
"I'm not Fred. I'm George." (1)
"No you're not!" Hyacinth spoke up before Heather could stop her. The family jumped in surprise. Heather groaned, but walked after her sister. "Sorry, but it's not nice lying to your mother."
"Fred." The woman said in a scolding tone. The twins boys grinned at her before running at the walls. "Are you girls first years? It's my Ron's first year as well."
"Yes ma'am. I'm Hyacinth, and this is Heather." Both girls adjusted their glasses. They already wore their uniforms, but it felt weird not wearing their favorite colors.
"Oh, aren't you adorable! The only thing different is your glasses!"
"And our eye color. I have blue eyes, Hyacinth has green." Heather corrected, smiling.
"My, but you're nearly identical, even down to your freckles!" The girls blushed. "Oh, I'm sorry, we need to get on the platform before it's too late! Now, all you girls need to do is walk straight at the barrier between nine and ten."
"Thank you, ma'am!" The girls chimed as one before doing as instructed. They waved as the woman, and the final of her children followed, and went to find a seat.
They joined a pudgy boy who looked like a nervous wreck.
"Hello! Do you mind if we join you?" Heather inquired as they stood at the door. He rapidly shook his head. "I'm Heather, and this is my twin Hyacinth."
"N-Neville L-Longbottom." The girls smiled brightly.
"Well Neville, it's lovely to meet you! Are you a first year as well?"
"Y-yes. Are you muggleborns?" The girls nodded, tensing. "It's nice to meet you."
"So you're a pureblood?" Heather tilted her head when he nodded. "How bad is incest here in the Wizarding World? We've been taught that inbreeding will cause so many problems, even death of a baby, if the parents are too closely related."
And so spent their next hour, explaining what they knew about incest, and how bad it was for genetics, and how it'd killed off thousands in Egypt.
Just as they were about to change the subject, the door opened to reveal a familiar face.
"Draco!" Hyacinth greeted with a wave. The blond hesitated. "Oh pish, come in and say hello already. Who are your friends?"
"Right, Crabbe, Goyle, these are Heather and Hyacinth Evans. Heather, Hyacinth, this is Vincent Crabbe, and Gregory Goyle." The girls smiled brightly.
"Nice to meet you!"
"Anyways, this is the last compartment I've checked, and I was wondering if you've seen Harry Potter?" Draco asked. Heather fought not to tense as Hyacinth shook her head.
"No, sorry. I read that he's supposed to be in our year, but he's not here with us. Why are you looking for him?" The blond blushed.
"Well, he's my cousin, distantly, and I wanted to check on him. Make sure he wasn't making a mistake on who he trusted." The girls cooed.
"How sweet. You don't even know him-" Heather started.
"-and already you want to keep an eye out for him!" Finished Hyacinth. "We'll tell him you're looking for him-"
"-if we see him." Draco nodded, smiled, and left.
"The start of term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory and spend free time in your house common room.
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.
"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." (!)
Heather and Hyacinth turned to each other, combs in hand to help fix their hair that was slightly windblown from the boat ride. Which had terrified Hyacinth, since she had aquaphobia. Then again Heather had androphobia, at least when it came to adult males. They couldn't touch her, and she put on a fake bravo. They finished tying each other's hair back just as Professor McGonagall returned.
The Sorting Hat sat upon a stool at the front of the hall that was filled with students and teachers.
"When I call your name, please step forward so I may place the Sorting Hat upon your head, and you may be sorted into your house." The woman unrolled a scroll she had in hand. "Abbott Hannah." The hat settled upon her head, shifting slightly.
"Hufflepuff!" Susan Bones followed her to the table.
"Boot Terry." Went to Ravenclaw followed by Mandy Brocklehurst. Lavender Brown was the first Gryffindor. Millicent Bulstrode was the final "B" name, and went to Slytherin. The girls blanked out, staring up at the sky as they awaited their turn. Which came after Fay Dunbar. "Evans Heather!" Hyacinth had to push her sister to start walking. The redhead watched with baited breath, as the Hat sorted through years of memories.
"Slytherin!" Silence fell upon the hall as the girl took a seat at the far edge of the table, back straight, and a determined glint in her eyes.
"E-Evans Hyacinth." The girl stalked with purpose up to the stool, a similar determined glint in her eyes as her sister. The crowd before here disappeared as the hat covered her eyes.
'Interesting. Your sister's memories already told me you'd be Harry Potter, but seeing what you went through, I cannot fault you for wishing to be completely different than he was. Your secret is safe with me. Now, like your sister, you can fit into any of the houses. However, I cannot fault you for wishing to be with your sister.' The hat mused. "Slytherin!" The girl handed the stunned Deputy Headmistress the hat and glided over to her sister, taking the side closest to the others to shield the other.
They watched closely as Neville was sorted into Gryffindors, a soft smile upon both their faces. Relief that he wouldn't feel like he disappointed his grandmother, again. Crabbe and Goyle sat directly across from them. Draco Malfoy joined them in Slytherin, sitting between Hyacinth and the rest of Slytherin, as if stating they were under his protection. A boy named Theodore Nott sat across from him, followed by Pansy Parkinson, and a Blaise Zabini sat beside Heather.
"Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you." (!) The girls gave each other looks of disbelief.
"He's off his rocker." Hyacinth swore, in a clear American accent. Heather huffed out a laugh.
"Never thought I'd dismiss a Professor, but should he even be allowed to be in charge of children?" Those around the twins shared shocked looks. "What is it?"
"You're mud-err, muggleborns. I thought all muggleborns worshipped the headmaster." Nott said in a quiet voice.
"I don't trust men." Heather supplied, shrugging. "I'll listen to them if they prove correct in what they are teaching, but no male is trustworthy." Hyacinth looped arms with her sister, glad to be left handed.
"Hush now, Heather. Eat your supper."
"So, how did you get into Slytherins, being mudbloods?" Sneered Pansy. The girls paused as they sat their forks down once more. They gave her a disapproving look.
"At least our genetics aren't ruined by inbreeding. Honestly, you should be calling 'purebloods' mudbloods. Incest is why the Pharaohs of ancient Egypt died so young, and had trouble conceiving children. Think like our cousins the Americans, we're Neobloods, that means new blood. Though we're not really. Japan's done a study, you know. They believe that muggleborns are descended from squibs that were cast out for having no magic." Heather spoke clearly and calmly.
"We plan on doing an inheritance test next summer, because unlike most muggleborns, we have no parents." It wasn't a lie. Heather had completely shed her former self, and Hyacinth knew that Lily and James Potter had died to protect her.
"Wait, you're orphans?" Draco demanded, turning to look them over.
"Yes. We live with people who are paid to care for us." Heather sighed, closing her eyes. "They ignore us, almost always traveling, but they do provide us a home with a roof, and don't abuse us, so I suppose it's better than the last home we were in." Again, there was truth intermixed in the lie.
"We're never going back to them, Heather." Hyacinth narrowed her eyes. "If anyone even tries it, I'll take us and make us disappear. I protected us for a year before I slipped up, so you can't say I'm not good at hiding." Heather smiled, looking at her sister.
"You ran away?" Blaise asked, surprise coloring his voice. Hyacinth paused, glancing over their audience.
"Let me ask you what you would have done differently: you live in a house where they beat you, tell you that you're a freak for having magic. Have you so down, that you start believing their lies, and try hard to suppress your magic. So hard, it nearly breaks you. Then comes a day that the person you live with decides that you're going to start earning your keep, and that you better be on your best behavior and do as the customer orders." Eyes of different colors widened. Hyacinth nodded. "My magic lashed out, and we ran."
"You-you could have became an Obscurus!" Draco said, scandalized. Both girls laid their forks down, unable to eat anymore as their minds spun with memories.
"If we hadn't had each other, I think that's where it was headed." Heather whispered softly. "If I hadn't had Hyacinth, I would have stayed. I wouldn't have had the courage to leave. It may sound terrible, but we're stronger because of what happened."
"That's the thing you need to remember about neobloods." Hyacinth concluded, glancing over at Ravenclaw, who was between the Slytherin and Gryffindor tables. "Just because we're new, doesn't mean we don't belong. We belong more than most, because this world, it's saving us instead of breaking us. Take Kevin Entwhistle," She pointed to the cowering boy. "He's probably on the streets right now, terrified because his parents couldn't handle having a wizard in the family. He's smart, because books comforted him, never failed to provide an escape from the abuse." The other Slytherin first years were silent as Dumbledore stood to end the feast.
After doling out warnings against the Forbidden Forest and the Third Floor Corridor, he flicked out his wand, and words appeared, and he told the room to pick their favorite tune.
"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please,
Whether we be old and bald,
Or young with scabby knees,
Our heads could do with filling,
With some interesting stuff,
For now they're bare and full of air,
Dead flies and bits of fluff,
So teach us things worth knowing,
Bring back what we've forgot,
Just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains all rot."
It felt like it was only the Slytherin first years that didn't sing. They followed silently behind the prefects, who explained everything they passed, including how the stairwells worked, and what step to avoid being stuck until someone helped you out. They reached a stretch of plain wall, where they said a password, Purity, and it pealed back much like Diagon Alley. Then they were told to wait for Professor Snape to arrive. Heather stiffened, but stayed in place.
The man arrived not long after.
"Welcome to Hogwarts, and the proud house of Slytherin." He started in a deep voice, somehow seeming very welcoming. "Some of you expected to be in this house the moment you were born." His eyes flicked to Draco, Pansy, and Theodore. "Others, this came as a surprise." Heather and Hyacinth moved closer together. "However, we are the only family you'll have in Hogwarts due to prejudice reasons. Do not trust anyone outside of these walls, for you may find yourself disappointed, and even hurt." The girls shivered as flashbacks flickered in their eyes.
"Professor, surely you jest about us treating them like family!" A teen, likely a seventh year, spat as he motioned to Heather and Hyacinth. The girls spun wands on him in seconds.
"Touch her, and we'll end you." They said as one. Silence filled the room, as the girls' eyes spoke the truth of their statement. Of their promise. "We've lived through hell to get here, you have no right to say we don't belong."
"Mr. Hughes, please do not start a fight." Severus started, pinching his nose.
"Touch them, Hughes, and I'll ruin your family." Draco's cold voice sent shivers down everyone's spines. "We don't even know if they are truly Muggleborns, as they are orphans."
"Thank you, Draco." Hyacinth offered a smile at him, but it was strained. "However, you don't need to protect us." She turned to the older boy wand tip lighting up. "I, Hyacinth Evans, so by swear, should anyone in this room attempt to harm my sister, I'll show them exactly what my magic can do when I loose control." A flash of bright light followed her oath.
"I, Heather Evans, so by swear, should anyone in this room, especially the males, attempt to harm my sister, I shall kill them." Heather's oath was copied, and everyone paled as she had said it seriously.
"You'll be taken to Azkaban!" Pansy shrieked.
"Ah, but see, we won't." Hyacinth smirked evilly. "We just swore in front of witnesses, that we will only attack if you hurt us. Nothing more, nothing less. It would be in self defense of my sister."
"Professor, are you going to let them get away with threatening me?" Hughes demanded.
"Well, you were trying to question their right to be here." The man shrugged. "They're already shown promise as young witches that can change things, I won't deny what the Hat said." Not long after, the first years were shown their rooms. Pansy and Mandy claimed the rooms beside the bathroom, while the sisters got the ones by the door. Heather and Hyacinth's cats were laying upon their beds, Kit and Kat respectively. The girls scooted them over before falling asleep without changing.
(!) These sections are straight from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (I know it's philosopher's stone in England, but I grew up reading it as SS, and so yeah, don't pay that much attention to that, I am American after all).