"Oh!" I gasped as I ran into the cloaked back of another student. My books slipped out of my arms and scattered papers blew through the corridor. "Oh, I'm so sorry!"
"Be careful." He said, turning around. His slate gray eyes landed on me. They widened slightly, and he tilted his head in confusion. "Hey, you're that Nerissa girl, right? I've heard so much about you and your story." He smirked and pushed his white blonde hair out of his face. "You're a very hot topic around here. Emphasis on the hot part." His smirk widened when my cheeks flushed. "Well, anyways. Watch where you're walking, Nerissa. Not everyone here finds you as interesting as I do." He turned and walked away, his black cloak swirling behind him. I glared after his retreating back, still grabbing at fluttering papers. It'd been only a week since my arrival at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, and already I'd managed to piss off most of the other students. Headmistress Flora's constant doting on me didn't help much either. She constantly praised me and would go on long rambles of how powerful I was and how mature my powers were. Not even my own housemates talked to me, unless they absolutely had to. I felt more lonely here than I ever had. I didn't have any friends, and my cat was usually off stalking mice in the kitchen. Feeling depressed, I finished gathering my books and papers and made my way to Charms class. I slipped in a few minutes late, avoiding Professor Kyfarial's stern gaze. I took my seat, at the back of the classroom, in an otherwise empty row. Professor Kyfarial didn't say anything, but his wise brown eyes looked at me knowingly. I turned away from him, and pulled my book out. While he hadn't really become a friend, Prof. Kyfarial had definitely become a confidante. He seemed to have a good sense of when one of his students needed advice. My first day, he held me after class to tell me if I ever needed to talk to anyone I could come to him. That was all he said before shooing me off to my next class. He was very brusque, but I saw the spark of caring in his eyes as he ushered me out of the classroom. I snapped out of my daze when a conspiratorial snicker sounded in front of me. Niobe and her acolytes were sneaking glances back, no doubt staring and laughing at me. I was a freak, a loner, an outcast. I wasn't raised in a magical household, I had no idea the nuances between the muggle and magical realm, and I didn't even know any of the basic spells that everyone else had learned at age two. Niobe had seemed to make it her ultimate goal to make sure I stayed an outcast.
And I was too uneducated to fight back.
Niobe was still giggling, but I didn't know why so I ignored her and read the board. Prof. Kyfarial had us starting on the levitation spell, and according to him and all the other professors I was a very gifted, natural individual. It didn't take long for me to master the spell on a simple feather, so Prof. Kyfarial had given me several different items to practice on, but I never practiced them in class so I worked on any other homework I had from other classes, mostly essays for Care of Magical Creatures and Astrology. They were a bitch to write, but the good student in me didn't let me slack on them like most of the other students. Sighing, I reached for my quill, only to find it had been transformed in a very angry, very disgruntled garden snake. Out of habit, I screamed and flung the poor snake across the aisle, where it landed smack on the top of Niobe's perfectly curled black hair. She screeched even louder than I did and smacked at her head, frantically trying to get the snake out of her hair. It got flung out of her hair and landed in the center aisle, writhing around. I felt bad for putting the poor creature through such hell. Prof. Kyfarial calmly walked to the snake and picked it up, carrying it to the open window and letting it slither down the wall. Once the snake was safe, Prof. Kyfarial turned back to the class.
"Well. Anyone care to explain what just happened?" He asked, his eyes sweeping across the class. They settled on me, then to Niobe who was smirking with her arms crossed.
"I think I know what happened Professor Kyfarial." Niobe said, her sugary voice carrying across the room. "It's all Nerissa's doing. She's such a freak, it was her weird way of trying to get my attention. I think you should send her to Headmistress Dawn."
"Oh? And why, pray tell, would Miss Hollywhite be trying to get your attention? You were obviously engrossed in your work, as was she." He turned to me. "Isn't that right?"
Silently, I nodded, not willing to draw any more attention to myself. Niobe huffed angrily, glaring at me.
"Who knows why she was trying to get my attention. Maybe it was to brag more about how talented she is? Or how much better she is at everything compared to everyone else?" She sneered at me. "Obviously she thinks she's too good for the rest of us if she's doing her other homework."
I lowered my head, feeling the tears stinging the back of my eyes. It was the same, no matter where I went. I was just too different.
"That's quite enough Niobe." A voice stated, sounding bored but angry. I looked up and saw the boy that I ran into in the hall, standing and pointing his ivory wand at Niobe. "Or would you rather I make you shut your whore mouth?"
Niobe's mouth hung open, her black eyes wide. I knew my mouth was the same, but for a completely different reason. Niobe was shocked that someone had stood up to her, I was shocked that someone had stood up for me.
"Mr. Malfoy." Professor Kyfarial eyed the boy, not warily but warningly. "Lower your wand."
But that was all Kyfarial said. He didn't reprimand the boy, and he didn't defend Niobe. Her mouth was closed now, into a thin, hard line. She was pissed, and I knew her anger would be directed at me. Feeling utterly done with everything, I stood up and bolted, ignoring Kyfarial's calls. It was happening all over again, everyone was treating me like a freak, even at the school that was supposed to embrace the freaks. I ran harder, trying to run away from the isolation, the taunts, the loneliness. It took me a few minutes to realize that someone was following me. Afraid it was Niobe but wanting to get the torture over with, I skidded to a stop, panting heavily. I could hear the panting behind me, and was surprised that Niobe had even bothered to work up any kind of sweat. After a few seconds, I realized we were halfway up the astronomy tower, a quiet and deserted area of the school. Behind me, I could hear Niobe regaining her breath and I knew the rage would be unleashed on me soon. But the voice that spoke between heavy breaths was not who I was expecting.
"Jesus Nerissa. You are really fast."
I whirled around to see the Malfoy boy, doubled over, hands on his knees, looking at me through his bangs.
"Malfoy! You...you were following me?"
He glared at me. "Call me Scorpius. And yes I was. I wanted...Kyfarial sent me after...to make sure you were ok." His grey eyes bored into mine, making me feel like he could see my soul.
"Oh...well thanks. For doing what he asked." I sputtered, feeling flustered and confused. Why would he lie about following me? And if Professor Kyfarial really had sent him after me, why was he acting shy about it? I shook my head. The last thing I needed to do was try and analyze the inner workings of Scorpius Malfoy, who, for all intents and purposes, seemed to be a sort of friendly person.
"Yeah. And about Niobe…"
"Don't. I know I shouldn't have let her get to me like that." I cut him off, leaning against the wall. I felt foolish and stupid for running away, for letting Niobe she could get under my skin easily.
"Actually, I was going to say leave her to me, but you do have a point." Scorpius leaned against the wall opposite of me, smirking a little. I glared at him, arms crossed.
"Not funny. Anyways, how would you deal with Niobe? She's like the queen of Hogwarts."
"And I'm the king. While we may not be a couple, and we never will because I can't stand the girl, she's not the only one who has an affluent father. I'm really good friends with Mr. Winteringham, and if I bring up her cruel use of magic against another witch, he'll take her down a peg." His smirk turned grim and he pushed himself off the wall, propelling him closer to me. "If you want me to, of course." His voice was deep and velvet, and his intense smoky grey eyes seemed to swallow me whole. My breath caught in my throat and I couldn't look away from him. "By the way, in case no one has told you, you are beautiful." With a final smirk, Scorpius pulled away from me, leaving me breathless and speechless. "You know where to find me, when you've made your decision." He turned away from me and disappeared down the stairs right as the bell for the next class rang. My heart raced and all I could do was stand there, plastered to the astronomy tower wall. Students flooded the halls and the tower, forcing me to come to my senses. I dashed back to the Charms classroom and grabbed my stuff, giving Professor Kyfarial, who sat at his desk, a nod before running back out and heading for Potions, which was all the way down in the basement. With our professor also being our head of house, I was not willing to even be a minute late. Besides, Professor Stroulger let us know from day one that he wouldn't tolerate much less than perfection. We, as Slytherins, had a duty to uphold the long standing reputation as the fiercest, most dedicated house. I slid into my seat right as the bell rang, leaving me breathless but happy I had made it on time. That happiness changed to dread shortly, though, because Potions was the class I was the worst at. No matter how close I paid attention and how hard I tried, I could never seem to get the hang of Potions. It was made even worse with the fact that Niobe was much better than me, a fact she always bragged about, especially when I failed miserably where she shone brighter. Professor Stroulger strode in a couple minutes after the bell, his intimidating demeanor commanding the classroom and demanding for silence. The idle murmurings and chatter of the class stopped as Stroulger took his position at the podium in front of the room.
"Hello class." His strong voice filled the room. "Today you will be trying to make the Draught of Living Death. Can anyone tell me what this potion is meant for? Anyone? Miss Hollywhite, perhaps you can enlighten us." His sea blue eyes fell on me, in the back of the class.
"Draught of Living Death is a potion that causes heavy sleep, almost as if the person the potion is used on is dead. It only has one cure that's been found, although we are still looking for another one." My voice whispered, but Stroulger's nod told me he heard me, and Niobe's venomous glare told me she heard me too. I hung my head, fighting back more tears. I imagine the professor was trying to help, but he, like Headmistress Dawn, ended up making things worse by pointing out my differences and highlighting my freakishness. I was startled by a small piece of paper landing perfectly on top of my potions book. Cautiously I picked it up, wondering if it was another stupid trick from Niobe. But when I opened it up, it silently bloomed into a holly blossom, with holly berries drawn beautifully around the leaves. Color splashed into the paper, the leaves turning vibrant green, the berries a soft ivory, the petals on the blossom turning a crimson red. The whole transformation only taking a few seconds, I was left to wonder where it had come from. I looked up and scanned the classroom, only to find Scorpius glancing back at me, a proud smirk on his face. Despite his devil may care attitude, I couldn't help but smile a little at his magic. It was beautiful. And I could see what he was saying, that I was beautiful, but then I caught Niobe staring longingly at Scorpius, watched her follow his gaze and land on me. Her eyes blazed with anger and I guessed that if we weren't in the middle of class, she would have gone after me right then and there. I groaned and dropped my head on the edge of my cauldron, ignoring the sting of pain from the impact. I sensed someone come up next to me. I dared to sneak a look out of the corner of my eye. Emeric Pyle looked down at me and smiled.
"Comfy down there?" he asked, his iridescent green eyes amused. I lifted my head and pushed my long bangs off my face.
"No, not particularly." I managed to sound normal, but my brain was whirling. Emeric was one of, if not, the most gorgeous guy in the entire school. He flipped his wavy brown hair out of his eyes and smiled again.
"Hey, I've noticed you were having trouble with potions. Would you be offended if I asked if I could help you in any way?" He laughed, his cheeks flushing slightly. I smiled at his shyness and turned back to my cauldron.
"I would not be offended. In fact, I would be very grateful for any help I could get. I really suck at this." I giggled to cover up my nervousness, and Emeric nodded, setting his stuff down next to me.
"Alright, what are you having problems with right now?" He asked, pulling out his potions book,