The next morning Bella woke up early enough that she avoided detection from Harry's new roommates and her own. She didn't think she could deal with any more attention than what had already been saddled on her. She got dressed for the day, putting her hair into a ponytail to keep it from bothering her and gathering all her class books/notes. She pulled out a blank black notebook for taking notes during her classes along with a few quills and ink. Bag over her shoulder she went down to the Common room to meet up with Harry who was waiting for her.
The managed to find their way to the Great Hall, though a few times they got turned around because the staircases moved. They were early enough that only a few other people were eating in the Hall and so they were relatively left in peace. Mcgonagall came around shortly after they arrived with their schedules and after scanning over their classes Bella turned to Harry. "We should finish breakfast quickly and try to find the way to our classes so we don't get lost later." Harry hummed his agreement before quickly finishing up the rest of his bacon.
Holding onto each other's hands Harry and Bella left the Great Hall to explore the magical Castle they would eventually call home. It was breath-taking, suits of armor lined halls, portraits greeted you as you walked past, ghosts floated about, stairs moved, and every time they turned a corner there was something new. That was just the Castle, the grounds were just as amazing, older students flew over their heads, a giant squid seemed to wave at them from the lake, the forest was so dense and foreboding that they were certain it held many secrets.
They managed to find the way to all of the listed classes with enough time left over to make it to their first class on time. Bella managed to drag Harry to the front of the classroom where she proceeded to stare at the cat sitting on the Professor's desk. There was something off about that cat, it sat too still, too rigid, and it hadn't tried to talk to her yet. Most animals seemed to sense something about her, and always said something even if they didn't expect her to answer (though she always tried to).
This cat was strange and wrong, so Bella had suspicious eyes on it while waiting for class to begin. About two minutes after class was suppose to have started Ron came barreling in through the door looking very relieved when he didn't spot the teacher. However that relief was short lived, as no sooner had he caught his breath was the cat changing from animal to human. Bella resisted the urge to shout 'I knew it!' Though it was somewhat amusing for her to watch Ron get dressed down by Mcgonagall, not for Harry though as he was hoping to make friends with Ron.
Class began soon afterwards and the first hour was spent discussing nothing besides the theory behind transfiguration. Bella took notes on the insights Mcgonagall gave to transfiguration as a Master of that field but did not quote her verbatim on everything. Her reasoning being she already had plenty of notes on the theory alone, these notes had to be on things she hadn't quite understood until they had been explained. The rest of the first day of classes went well, charms was fun and the professor was very entertaining to be around. Professor Sprout was very warm and welcoming, Bella enjoyed her class very much. Though Bella did notice the Professors staring at Harry and then her sometimes with the oddest look on their faces. When they stared at her in particular it was as if they couldn't quite believe she existed…if that made any sense.
They didn't encounter any problems until they entered Potions for the first time. Bella had been excited; potions came easily to her because of her extensive knowledge of the kitchen. However, when their Professor banged into the classroom like an overgrown bat immediately belittling them, Bella knew she wouldn't get very much enjoyment from the class. He began calling roll like the other professors but when he got to them Bella noticed him pause. The professor was studiously ignoring her presence, like he couldn't even bare to look at her.
When he got to Harry, immediately, his tone became sneering and very antagonistic. "Mr. Potter, our new…celebrity," Bella decided right then that she didn't like this man…Snape, not at all. Snape then spent the next few minutes grilling Harry on questions he didn't know the answer to, and though she was tempted Bella knew Snape would notice had she given him the answers. So instead Bella grasped Harry's hand from beneath their lab table and tried to comfort him that way. Harry smiled a bit at her, nodding, it told her more than anyone else could know from a simply nod.
They were twins, like all twins there was a connection so deep between them that it was almost like they had a secret language all their own. Harry's nod told Bella, that he was ok, that he had dealt with bullies before and this one would not break him. Bella smirked in response, telling Harry that this year was not going to be easy for Snape. Once one has made an enemy out of Belladonna Potter one does not simply walk away unscathed and there was no easier way to make an enemy of her than to go after her twin.
Bella had not been wrong when she had assumed the hat would have placed her in Slytherin, very readily, had said artifact been given access to the girl's mind. As a product of their environment both twins could be quite devious when they needed to be, but out of either of them, Bella was the one most inclined to it. Bella knew she had darker tendencies than her Twin did because Bella wasn't the one in the Hero's role. Harry was brave, kind, and had a strong sense of morals. He had to be this brave knight for her outside of their house, Harry was her champion and Bella appreciated that.
However, inside of their house it was rife with low morals and cruel hearts. The Dursleys didn't accept brave words and fearless faces, that didn't stop them from raising their hand to them or cutting short their food. No their 'relatives' only responded to being deceived, manipulated, bribed, and blackmailed. That was Bella's job because Harry hadn't the stomach for something so degrading. It didn't bother Bella, she was good at what she did and her little revenge plots helped sooth their anger.
So when Harry saw Bella's eyes narrow a bit from behind her bangs he knew that Snape was not going to have a good year, hell he was not going to have any good years. Not while Bella was around to have a say in it and that allowed him to let go of that smoldering knot of anger in his stomach. It was doubtful that his sister even knew how much she saved Harry, he wouldn't allow himself petty revenge but that didn't mean he didn't crave it. Unanswered cravings and bottled rage had a tendency to eat at a person's soul; Bella saved him from that as she was the sword to his denied darker desires.
After Potions, Harry couldn't make it to the Great Hall fast enough wanting to leave that overgrown bully and dark room behind. With Bella as his partner their potion had of course turned out perfectly but that didn't mean he was going to like learning it. Bella walked calmly next to him, ignoring the passing looks they got and sitting very coolly beside him at the table. Harry piled plates for them both before tucking into his own meal. He recognized the look on Bella's face, she was plotting something and he really preferred not to know.
Their owls, Eros and Hedwig, interrupted her thoughts however swooping down to them with packages tied to their legs. Bella beamed at Eros, tenderly feeding him some chicken while taking it from his leg. Harry was eyeing his dubiously but he gave in eventually sighing handing Hedwig some strips of his sandwich before taking his also. "Isn't it wonderful! We've got them already now we can do our homework all at once without worrying about it!" Bella said waving the thick package in the air, the homework from the Academy that their Aunt had forwarded. "Yeah, wonderful," Harry grumbled. He still couldn't believe she was making him continue his studies in the non-magical sense on top of his magical one.
Still looking at her ecstatic face he decided to suck it up and take one for the team. If it made his twin this happy then that was enough for him to suffer through it, Bella wasn't the only one self-sacrificing. Harry never felt like he was a part of the world they had left behind, but this magical one fit him so well. However, Bella was not the sort of girl who would trap herself to any one world; instead she would rather kill herself by trying to be a part of both.
The rest of the first week was spent getting into the groove of things and finding their way to their classes. Bella spent most of her spare time either in the library or somewhere on the grounds. She always had a book in her hand, preferring to throw herself into learning as much as she could and generally she avoided everyone besides Harry. Harry on the other hand soon became friends with Ron, and was always striving to be of friendly acquaintance to most everyone he met.
As they got more comfortable with their new school Bella stopped sneaking into Harry's bed at night and they both soon began to be absorbed by their own lives. Still, after dinner Bella made sure to force Harry to do his Magical and Muggle studies. She was a hard taskmaster and Bella would not allow Harry to be lazy on any aspect of his learning. No matter how much Harry really wanted to get into Ron's way of studying (which was not at all) his sister would not allow it.
Eventually both fell into their own routines, Bella was too shy to actively make friends and Harry was too sociable not to be surrounded by at least three people. It was much like when they had been attending the non-magical boarding academy and while they did find time to spend with one another that time was usually full of other obligations. Bella felt the most at home when she was striving towards something because that was how she grew up. Since she was a small child she had been ruthlessly pursuing a path that would lead her to success and a life free of the Dursleys.
Bella had been the motivator, the one with all the plans and so she was the one planning now. She was the one driving them both to some unforeseeable goal and mostly Harry was just along for the ride. Harry was more of a social butterfly, as he had to be growing up and so he was busy making friends to create his network. Bella had given him that role, he was the most comfortable with it and so he chose to continue that in Hogwarts. Bella, even as a small child, had seen the importance of knowing the 'right' people. The 'right' people by her definition were anyone and everyone. One never knew when someone could become useful after all, and it wouldn't do to underestimate anyone.
However, she was much to shy to go about connecting with people and so that role fell to Harry. It was a role he was quite good at by now, it was familiar and Harry resumed it almost unconsciously. Anyone who tried to talk to him was welcomed, encouraged and generally Harry became very well liked. Even among the other houses, excluding of course Slytherin, Harry had a good reputation as very down to earth and friendly. Harry enjoyed his popularity but he didn't lose himself in it. Ron was still the only one he hung out with in any consistency but hardly anyone noticed.
The first month of school Bella and Harry established a rhythm to follow but every day ended the same. Harry would hug her goodnight and she would kiss his forehead while wishing him good dreams. This was all done away from prying eyes of course because some things just aren't meant to be shared among others. Within the first month Snape was also running into a spot of very bad luck it seemed. His chair broke on him at least four times a week always just as he sat down, his notes were always misplaced, and his robes had on occasion turned colors without his notice (pink, yellow, bright purple, neon orange, and baby blue so far). Not to mention he kept finding strange things in his food, flies, spiders, feathers, marbles, and at one time a rubber ball.
Needless to say he was in a horrible temper the entire month and the students suffered for it. Though they didn't seem to mind so much as it was a very amusing show. Every time something strange, or unlucky happened to Snape, Harry would seek out Bella give her a hug. He never breathed a word of it to anyone, but one night he hinted at it to Ron. Who had been too dense at the time to understand his meaning but his twin brothers, who had been nearby, were not.
So right before the end of this first long month the Weasley twins got a hold of Bella, literally, they picked her up by her arms and dragged her off to an unused corridor. "What's this about then?" Bella asked generally curious about why she was being lifted up a foot off the ground by two red haired boys. They set her down grinning devilishly at her, "We want to know how you managed it!" Fred said excitedly. "Right, we've been trying to get at him for ages!"
"It's a bit sad really!" Fred said turning to his twin with a whine. "To be outdone by a firstie!" George said in a sigh barely managing not to smile. "For shame" "Quite right dear brother!" Bella just sat back in amusement watching the two dramatically bemoan the fact that she had outdone them. Pride flickered inside of her and she smiled gently at the thought that she could be proud of her little pranks. No one had ever praised her like they were about the things she had done before and it motivated her in a way.
"Enough dear brother we must hear how it was done!" Both turned eager eyes on a red faced Bella who stammered a bit at the attention. She managed to reveal a bit of her secret to them, and that was the start of a beautiful friendship. The twins grew to love having Bella around during their little escapades and Bella grew to love having two friends. Of course they were very different in personalities; the twins were both very loud and uninhibited. While Bella was more reserved, and focused on studying being terribly shy. They made an odd trio but they were happy with it.
To the twins Bella was a good source for new ideas for both pranks and new joke items. For Bella, the Twins were geniuses able to give her all sorts of help with some of her more outrageous ideas. If Bella wasn't in the library now, she was by the Twins helping them with their devious little plans. This of course resulted in a whole new level of hell for Snape. It had the happy consequence of causing Snape to be so distracted trying to catch traps that he didn't bully anyone as much anymore and he laid off Harry a lot.
It was extremely satisfying for Bella and Harry. It was about a month and half into their new school that they had their first flying lesson. Harry was a natural and his reflexes were unmatched by anyone. He managed to catch Neville before he fell off his broom when he took off at the beginning of the lesson. Bella didn't fair nearly as well, she flew nicely but it made her feel very uncomfortable to do so, on a rickety old broom. Harry had caught the attention of their Head of House during the lesson and he became the youngest seeker in a century.
Bella was happy for him of course but it lead to a not totally unexpected confrontation between Harry and a certain pompous blond. He was challenged to a duel at midnight in the trophy room. Harry wasn't one to back down and he readily agreed choosing Ron for his second. Bella already had plans with Fred and George to raid the restricted section so she couldn't go with Harry to his duel. She did wish him luck and told him that it was entirely possible Malfoy was setting him up for a trap.
Harry only nodded and said, "Well it would be better for me to regret something I have done then to regret something I haven't." Bella nodded and told him to keep both eyes open. She met the twins in the usual secret passage to the library and they set off right away. Fred took the map and stood just outside the section on look out and distraction duty should anyone stumble in on them. While George showed Bella his trick to getting books off the shelves without setting off the alarms on them.
He went for books on charms, transfiguration, and hexes, things that would help them with their joke inventions. Bella went for books on animal transformations and obscure magics. All the while she had no idea her twin was running into a room filled with a rather large three-headed dog. The next morning was the start of something strange, Harry became distant to her and though no one else would have noticed Bella could feel the difference. He was keeping something from her and it hurt her to know.
Magic was something she could lose herself in when the pain she was feeling threatened to engulf her. For Bella magic came as easy as breathing sometimes and even if she didn't know why it was so she was thankful for it. The Twins were friends but they had their own special connection to each other. Bella couldn't help but feel like the interloper sometimes when she hung around them. Harry was distant, but he was still her twin. She wanted desperately to know what he was hiding from her but Bella couldn't work up the courage to ask.
During this time she noticed that Harry was spending most of his time with Ron and that bossy know-it-all Hermione from the train. This baffled her since Ron and Hermione got along as well as oil did with water. Still she said nothing, concentrating all her time in studying and trying the transformation from human to animal. Bella had this with a faint hope in her heart that if she could get the transformation right she could start to teach Harry. It was her hope that doing so would bring them together like they used to be and bring down the wall she started to feel being formed between them.
During the Halloween feast she was running through ideas in her head when the Defense Professor burst through the door screaming about a Troll before promptly passing out. Bella looked at him disgust well hidden behind her eyes; secretly she was glad she used his class to study other things. This confirmed for her that this so called defense Professor was utterly incompetent and would never teach her anything worthwhile. He came in second next to Binns in her mental list of incompetent teachers.
As she was following the Prefect out of the Great Hall Bella noticed that Harry was dropping back to the end of the line along with Ron who was looking extremely guilty. For a moment she wavered on following them but the ache in her heart made her feet start to move after them even before her brain made her choice. Bella caught up to her twin silently following just behind the two, unnoticed in their rush to get to Hermione in the girl's bathroom.
Apparently Ron had something stupid and had sent the girl off crying all day. Harry was going to warn her, Ron was tagging along and Bella was simply following them to ensure her twin was safe. They found Hermione quickly enough, just not before the troll did. For a moment no one knew what to do and so Bella stepped in just before her twin could do something stupid. Harry was one to act first, plan later. "Harry get Hermione, Ron distract the thing," Bella ordered startling the two boys so much they froze of a second, "NOW!"
Harry dove for Hermione spurred into action from his sister's loud demand while Ron picked up some of the smashed bit of marble from the Troll's destruction. Ron started to throw bits of whatever he could get his hands on at the troll while Harry guided Hermione along the wall to the door. Bella worked on summoning the club from the Troll's hand, which was not easy with the grip it had on the thing. But thanks to Ron's distractions she managed it and used magic to bash the troll over the head with its own club.
It was out like a light, the other three stood in stunned silence for a bit staring at it but Bella was busy thinking things through. She had read about trolls, they were strong but stupid there was no way one could have gotten in on its own. Turning her attention to the other three she noticed the Professors' voices around the corner. Hissing in annoyance she said, "Let's get out of here!" They all managed to just get around the corner before they could be discovered.
Their adventure did not manage to tear down the wall that seemed to be forming between the Twins and it made Bella feel more alone than ever. In fact, it seemed to do the opposite and drove them further apart. The trio of Harry, Ron and Hermione hung around each other almost constantly now. With little else to do Bella threw herself into trying for a transformation in the vain hope that it would bring Harry back to her.
Meanwhile Harry was having a turmoil all his own. Hermione had advised against telling anyone else about the 'fluffy' incident because it would cause more problems then it would solve. More importantly it would drag Bella into this confusing situation that was obviously very dangerous. Harry couldn't drag Bella into this mess and risk anything happening to her. So he had kept his silence about it even though he was dying to confide in her all these troubling thoughts.
Harry was sure Bella would be able to figure this all out in a moment. Hermione was smart but she didn't hold a candle in his mind in comparison to his twin. Bella was terrifying when you gave her the chance; give her a few facts and a couple hours Bella would have figured this all out. Harry just couldn't help but draw back when the thought of her hurt came into his mind. He had spent his life protecting her whenever he could and that instinct wouldn't allow him to bend now.
What he failed to realize that in keeping this important secret from Bella a wall was slowly building between them. His fierce need to protect her was driving a wedge between them that could not be seen only felt. They went through the motions of before; she still kept him in stern sights when it came to their schoolwork magical and muggle. They still said goodnight, still had that inherent connections all twins did but there was something between them now.
The months passed by in a blur, Harry trying to figure out a mystery with his new found friends and Bella studying furiously. Before either of them realized it winter vacation came and with it the school emptied. The quiet Bella had been so searching for before was disturbing now that it was so readily found. Without realizing it she had gotten used to the crowded castle and bustling Great Hall. Now that only a few remained Bella didn't feel very comfortable inside the too silent castle. Not with Harry as distant as he was now and with nothing major to take up her time.
That was how she found herself out in the snow, bundled and layered with warming charms, staring at the forbidden forest in contemplation. Her book bag only held a few of her books and her odd outside notes along with a packed lunch. It was taking her longer than she thought it would to work up the nerve to enter the foreboding looking forest. Bella was glad she had woken up early to eat breakfast and get here before everyone else got up. It gave her the time she needed to work up her nerve to step lightly into the forbidden forest and go exploring.
Ever since that old crazy Headmaster had forbidden the students entry to this forest and the third floor she had made it a point to go exploring there. The third floor had a very large Cerberus in one of its rooms but Bella had been able to talk the big guy out of making her his chew toy. She even visited him from time to time to play with him since he got almost as lonely as she was. It had taken her a few days to figure out what exactly the Cerberus was guarding and now Bella was certain the Headmaster was as mad as a Hatter. To hide the Philosopher's stone in a school full of overly curious children, seriously what had he expected to happen?
Still with the third floor and most of the castle itself explored (thanks to the twins) Bella had run out of places to explore with any excitement. So here she was walking along the trees of the forbidden forest wondering if she would run into anything that she couldn't handle. Eventually she came to a small icy looking pond that hadn't quite frozen over and the clearing was pretty as well as open. The trees circled it and it was just snow with the pond now. However Bella was certain it would be a beautiful spot come spring, with flowers and animals coming for a drink.
She took a seat among the protruding roots of one particularly old looking tree and found that she was comfortable enough there once she brushed away the snow. It was peaceful, and quiet in the right sort of way that the castle wasn't. Sighing Bella was happy she found a safe feeling place in this intimidating forest and relaxed a bit. She had thought of spending her time here reading but she didn't relish the thought of taking off her gloves so that she could turn the pages. Finally she settled on practicing her animal transformations and radiating her magic to give it a stretch.
Radiating was something she had picked up from one of her fiction books, though she couldn't remember which one exactly. Bella had been practicing it since they had first discovered their magic and it was very relaxing to do. It involved letting her magic free reign, so-to-speak, and though the loss of control was frightening at first now it was just freeing. Radiating her magic made her pulse with it, it colored the air around her with her magic and it wasn't exactly discreet. Which was why Bella had not had the chance to do it for quite some time now.
It wasn't surprising that when she let go the clearing was flooded with her magic and she lifted a bit off the ground from the force of releasing so much energy. It felt good like stretching a muscle that had been cramped up for way too long. Without the pressure from keeping her magic locked under her control Bella found she could think much clearer. Transforming into any animal was harder than she had expected and with schoolwork from her non-magical school along with her other studies it was hard to find the time to devote to it. Now relaxed and with a mind clear Bella decided she would try to accomplish something today in her transformation.
She had spent countless hours studying various animals' forms, the anatomy, the habits, the recorded instincts and everything so she could be prepared. Bella had studied a wide variety of animals, horses, deer, birds, wolves, dogs, cats, tigers, leopards, and the list went on. There were countless meticulously taken notes on the animgus transformation and anything in her rather large fiction collection that had people transforming into animals. Still the only things Bella had managed so far was to grow a bit of fir on her arms and that wasn't much in her opinion.
With her mind clear from the overwhelming pressure of her magic Bella realized the problem she had created in her overzealous drive to transform. There were too many options, too much knowledge and so her focus was lost along with her transformation. What Bella needed to do was choose one to focus on to change into first and then when she had that form mastered to work on the next. Now to decided on which form to pick since they all had their strong points and their weaknesses.
Looking around her snow piled setting Bella felt inspired and finally settled on the animal she would try for first. A few hours later Bella was grinning like mad at her hand, which was now a snow-white paw. She let the accomplishment wash over her and relaxed into the roots of her tree. It was a start, and Bella knew that eventually she would get the transformation.
Christmas came without much fuss from Bella and when she woke that morning to find some presents at the foot of her bed she was very much surprised. So she got up and went to see if Harry had had a similar experience, taking her unopened gifts with her. Harry was still asleep and Ron was snoring beside him though Bella could see that they both had a pile of presents on their beds also. She sat on Harry's bed and decided to read the cards on her gifts before she woke them up.
Two of her presents were from the twins, one from their mother that was surprising, almost as the one from Hagrid and one was from Harry. That made her curious so she looked over Harry's pile and saw that her present had been delivered to him also. Bella decided that she would put that out of her mind though since it would only disturb her to dwell on it. Just before she woke up Harry, Bella decided to go grab the magical camera from her room since she had yet to take any pictures with it and she decided to change that now.
So both Harry and Ron were woken up by a flash of light and a loud crack from the camera while she tried her best not to laugh at their loud complaints. They were soon distracted by their presents however, so Bella could take all the pictures she wanted. Bella opened her gifts quickly, a prank book from Fred and some joke sweets from George. A green sweater from Mrs. Weasley that had a 'B' on the front of it that matched the one Harry had received from her also.
From Harry she had gotten a thick, beautiful blank photo album and Bella resolved right away that she was going to take a lot of pictures from now on so she could fill the entire thing up by the end of Hogwarts. She snapped a picture of Harry's floating head with a smile wondering who was foolish enough to give him an invisibility cloak. Shrugging Bella put it out of her mind since she had enough on her plate right now than trying to figure out life's little mysteries. She readied her camera again deciding that she wanted to take a few pictures of Hogwarts itself for her album.
-x-
Harry pulled Bella along holding her hand tightly, and was practically vibrating with excitement. He had to show her the mirror he had found and give her the chance to see their parents too, it was only fair. Harry pulled her into the room with the mirror and put her in front of it pulling off the cloak from them and stepping aside. He was a little frustrated when she didn't look into the mirror right away and instead seemed to be keeping her eyes on the inscription above it.
Bella looked at the mirror, almost too scared to look inside it at all and eventually she looked into it. She was a little disappointed that she didn't see her parents like Harry had, instead it was like looking into the future. There she was, her future self all grown up with a round belly and another baby in her arms. There was a shadowy looking man at her side, children all around them; Harry was at her side also with a blurry woman and his own children.
They had a huge family, so many kids, and they weren't alone anymore. "Mirror, Mirror, on the wall…" Bella whispered as she touched its smooth surface, this mirror reminded her of Snow White. This mirror was just as misleading and cursed. "We shouldn't come here anymore Harry," Bella said quietly. "What! Why not! Don't you want to see our parents? Aren't they great! Why!" Harry asked desperately.
"Harry…our parents are dead and long gone. We could waste away in front of this mirror; it does no good dwelling on impossible dreams and forgetting to live." Bella turned away from the mirror, never once telling Harry that she had not seen the ghosts of the past but a possible future. This mirror showed you what you most desired, Harry desired to correct the past and Bella wished desperately for a peaceful future. It did no good dwelling on either for too long forgetting to live in the present.
She tugged Harry out of the room, intent to get the hell out of there. Harry would return later without her, for a few more times before he ran into Dumbledore and the mirror was moved.
-x-
Bella was glad when the winter break ended and the students came back. Harry hadn't quite forgiven her yet for refusing to go back to the mirror and she couldn't take the quiet much longer. She had spent most of her time with Hagrid, surprisingly, since she had to thank him for making flutes for her and Harry. Though Harry had just put his in his trunk and forgotten mostly about it. Bella had been trying her hand at playing it, and it was going mostly ok.
Hagrid was nice, a very good listener, and he knew so much about magical creatures Bella was always interested in talking to him. Her animal transformation was going on steadily and with the twins and Hagrid keeping her company she didn't feel as lonely. Hagrid was a nice man, though a bit loose lipped, and very oblivious though he meant well. That was why Bella was naturally very suspicious when someone just gave Hagrid a dragon egg of all things.
Bella made sure Hagrid knew what he was getting into when she had found out about the egg and the danger of being found. Hagrid said he was prepared for the consequences but Bella wasn't so sure. So it was with great reluctance that Bella decided to contact Ron's brother Charlie who she remembered working for a dragon reserve in Romania. Bella found herself with more free time on her hands since she had gotten used to her schedule, her transformation would be complete soon, her schoolwork was always done the night it was given and without any real friends to take up her time.
Since she had some time on her hands Bella had taken to taking pictures of everyone and everything about the castle. It made her feel a bit like she was a part of a school yearbook committee, which made her ask the librarian if there were any yearbooks of her parents. What surprised her was how Madam Pince looked at her bewildered asking her, 'what's a year-book?' Bella was very surprised to find out that they had never even heard of a yearbook, let alone had one of her parents.
That got her thinking; since she was taking pictures of everyone anyway, why not make her own yearbook. Before Bella knew it she was snapping pictures of every student in Hogwarts and taking notes on their names, favorite things, and year rank. Since she was doing this anyway, she decided to put some effort into it and make it great. Designing layouts, bios, finding out about any clubs and their activities so she could do a spread of them. She went so far as to study every professor at Hogwarts, and not just the ones she attended class with.
It was all very interesting and Bella was finding herself very excited about it turning out well. Though she was a bit disappointed to find out that there wasn't very many clubs at Hogwarts, just Quidditch, a choir and a few study groups. Time flew by and before Bella knew it Hagrid sent her an owl saying the egg was going to hatch. She made it into his oppressively hot hut and was startled to find Harry there with Hermione and Ron. Harry was still refusing to talk to her but Bella could tell he was going to crack soon. Ron and Hermione didn't really acknowledge her much since Harry refused to do so.
Watching that dragon hatch was probably one of the most beautiful things Bella had ever seen, and barely managed to hide her glassy looking eyes from the others. Luckily they were distracted by Hagrid's rather loud wailing and didn't notice her hastily rubbing her eyes. "Hagrid you can't keep him, you know that right," Hermione asked with her best slow calm voice. "Yeah, mate you live in a bloody wooden house! Not very fire proof mind," Ron mumbled. "Ron don't you have a brother who works with dragons?" Harry asked while avoiding Hagrid's teary eyes.
Ron sputtered red in the face from being put in the limelight and becoming the target of Hagrid's teary black beetle eyes. Bella huffed, "Oh for goodness sake, I already owled Charlie, he will pick…Norbert…up sometime next week. We are discussing dates and times." "How do you know about Charlie!" Ron shouted torn between surprised and indignation. "I owled him when I found out Hagrid had gotten ahold of a dragon's egg, I remembered what he did and that he was your brother. I figured he knew Hagrid and would want to help." Bella said talking slowly and annunciating every word. After all Ron wasn't known for his quick wit.
Somehow this turned into an argument of epic proportions and Bella wasn't sure if she even wanted to argue her point against the three of them. Harry was just being petty, he knew he was close to breaking down and talking to her so he wanted to add fuel to his anger. Hermione and Bella had a mutual dislike of each other stemming from the fact that while they both were very bright, they had different views on how the world worked. For Bella the world was a cold calculated place that sometimes you had to break the rules/laws to get what needed to be done. For Hermione she was a stickler for authority figures and how she thought the world would be always have fairness in mind.
They clashed because Bella had seen more of the world's darker side and had already come to accept that the world wasn't going to play fair. So why should she? Besides Hermione resented her for being real competition for the top of every class and Bella had the feeling she wasn't used to sharing the title 'brightest girl in the room'. With Ron it was simple, he had wanted to be the hero of the day and Bella had stolen his chance at the limelight. Bella never liked him much anyway since he seemed like a jealous, immature, prick that was a fair-weather friend. If this was what having a friend was like Bella was glad she didn't have any, they were too troublesome.
Bella kept up communications with Charlie Weasley for three weeks before it was decided that Charlie and his friends would meet them just outside Hagrid's hut near the forbidden forest. Charlie had wanted to do it from the Astronomy Tower but Bella had talked him out of that since it would be easier for them to get caught getting the dragon there. Then the night of the pick up Ron got bit by Norbert and ended up in the hospital wing with a swollen hand.
He had apparently had a note of all things in his transfiguration book and Bella was almost certain Malfoy had seen it. The bloody idiot would ruin everything. Harry insisted he be there to help Hagrid see Norbert off as a friend, and Bella had to go because she still had to finish her enchantments on Norbert's moving crate since it couldn't be finished until it was sealed. Since it was so short notice there was no time to change the location of the meet, and sending off an owl now wouldn't do much good as it would take too long to get a reply.
Not for the first time Bella wished there was a magical equivalent to cell phones since it would take care of this problem. She decided that she might work on the idea as a side project latter but for now she just had to worry about not getting caught. Hermione insisted on coming along to so all three of them squeezed under Harry's invisibility cloak and snuck down to Hagrid's hut that night. It was not a comfortable journey since they had yet to reconcile over their disagreements.
When they finally made it Bella just got to work right away after Hagrid put Norbert into the crate. Bella tried her best to ignore Hermione who was being a nag trying to get her to discuss what she was doing. It was very distracting and Charlie along with his friend arrived in the middle of it just as Bella finally managed to tune her out. Thankfully they were quiet and let Bella finish her work.
Charlie was younger than Bella had expected, only seventeen, and he had a kind face. Charlie had the famous Weasley red hair but his was a darker shade than Ron's or the twins. He had a nice tan and was very fit in a casual way. He smiled at her warmly and shook her hand saying, "Its nice to finally put a face to your letters." Bella noticed his hands were big, and engulfed her own easily.
Bella blushed beat red, "Yeah likewise." She said.
"So what were you doing there," Charlie said gesturing to the crate.
"Oh," Bella began wishing her blush would die down, "I was casting some protective spells, fire proofing, unbreakable, feather light, stability charms, and cleaning charms so you don't have to worry about…ah well I'm sure you know." She said fidgeting.
Charlie's face blossomed into a broad smile, "Wow, you already know how to cast those! I didn't get the hang of half of those spells until fifth year. You sure you're only eleven," he said jokingly.
Bella hated the fact that her face seemed to get even redder somehow, "Ah, well, I love magic," She said lamely.
Charlie just smiled at her, "Well that is where it all starts! Love something enough and you want to learn everything about it. Hagrid was the one that got me interested in Dragons, of course, spent quite a few nights out in the forbidden forest with him studying creatures! Learned more from him than my Care of Magical Creatures Professor!" He said. Hagrid blush and tried to brush it off. Charlie didn't let him though.
"Yeah, Hagrid knows a lot about creatures, I usually ask him when I am curious about a creature I uncover during my studies. He usually know more things about them than the books do!" Bella agreed blush finally dimming a bit.
"Yep, Hagrid a great source of information when it comes to creatures. Mind you his definition of 'dangerous' isn't usually the same as us normal blokes. Though I must admit, he was right about dragons! As long as you respect their power and appreciate the danger they can be, Dragons are a lot friendlier than the books give them credit for. Though tickling a sleeping one is never a good idea, they're grumpy when they first wake up." Charlie said.
"Fascinating," Bella said honestly as she helped them situate Norbert's crate between their two brooms. She blushed red but managed to make herself ask, "Do you mind if I still send you letters from time to time. I'd love to get more information about dragons from such a reliable source." She said.
Charlie smiled, "Course! I'd be delighted to help bring another crazy magical into the fold!" he said laughing.
Bella blushed and then watched them take off a bit reluctantly…she hadn't expected Charlie to be so nice. As she was saying her goodbyes to Hagrid, Bella noticed that Harry and Hermione were heading back to the castle without her. That didn't bother her much since she had recently mastered the disillusionment charm (thanks to the twins) but it did bother her that Harry was forgetful enough that he had left his invisibility cloak. She hurried after the two of them with the cloak and hoped she managed to get to them before they ran into any teachers.
They had just made it to the entrance hall when Bella caught up with them throwing the cloak over them desperately as she heard McGonagall's voice. Bella shushed them harshly when they made to protest her rough treatment and thankfully they listened as McGonagall walked by dragging Malfoy by his ear. Bella was frustrated by their foolishness went on ahead and the two of them followed her sheepishly. They made it back to the dorm without getting caught and then went off to bed.
Hermione looked like she wanted to talk to her but Bella snapped her curtains around her bad closed. She was just so frustrated, Harry wasn't talking to her, and this distance between them was killing her. The next morning Harry took her aside before breakfast pulling her into one of the numerous empty classrooms. "Look, Bells, I'm…I'm really sorry I've been such a Berk to you." He said smiling at her, "Forgive me?" he asked.
Bella sighed, "Of course, we're the only family we have Harry, and we can't afford to be mad at each other." She began.
Harry smiled, "Thanks Bells," he said sighing in relief.
Bella held up a finger, "But I want to know what the heck you've been keeping from me. This is the worst fight we've ever had and it wouldn't have happened if you had just let me in!" she said scowling.
"But, Bells," Harry began.
"No! Harry, you need to tell me, stop making excuses not to and spill!" She said jaw set stubbornly.
Harry slumped, "Ok, well…it started that night I went to duel Malfoy." He began. Harry told her about finding the monstrous three headed dog on the third floor. About his suspicions of the Gringotts break-in, the mystery of Nicholas Famel, and their suspicions about Snape since the Quittich game where he had almost been thrown from his broom.
"Well, if you had bothered to tell me any of this I would have told you about the Philosopher stone months ago!" Bella said exasperated.
"I know! Hermione only realized it after the break and she even had a book already checked out on him and everything!" Harry whined.
"I think you're wrong about Snape," Bella said abruptly causing Harry to gape at her in disbelief.
"What?! Why!" He said.
"Think about it, Snape is way too obvious! If Snape wanted you dead he wouldn't pick such an obvious way…a counter curse has the same symptoms as a curse. Besides, Snape is a Slytherin, if he was going to steal the stone no one would have noticed until it was gone. Slytherins, especially one as slippery as Snape, are just not that careless as to let first years discover their debacle plots!" Bella argued.
"Well if not Snape then who!" Harry asked frustrated his stare suspect was so thoroughly shot down.
Bella had a considering look on her face, "If I had to guess, my money's on Quirell," she said. At Harry's look of utter disbelief she continued on stubbornly, "No really, I've been researching all the professors here," she said.
"Why have you been researching the professors?" Harry interrupted.
"I'll tell you about that later, but in my research they only one acting out of the ordinary with suspicious behavior patterns is Quirell!" Bella said.
"Why Quirell, it could be one of the upperclassmen, why does it have to be a professor?" Harry questioned.
"Simple, the professors are the only ones that would know enough magic to even attempt a break into Gringotts. Even the seventh years wouldn't stand a chance, and the one who broke into Gringotts is obviously the same someone trying to steal it now." Bella said.
"Still Quirell?" Harry said.
"You really need to learn to look past the fronts people put up Harry, and yes, Quirell. I mean really think about it, he was the one to 'warn' us about the troll. Trolls are stupid, that's putting it lightly, no way is one going to break into Hogwarts without some help. Before he went on his sabbatical Quirell was noted to be very gifted in dealing with trolls, and that's only the first of many inconsistencies." Bella lectured.
"Ok, well, convince me then," Harry challenged.
"Fine, first of all, that turban he wears that absolutely reeks of Garlic? He says it's to ward off vampires but anyone with even a barest knowledge of vampires knows that their only real weakness is fire. If he had really run into vampires which is supposedly why he stutters then Quirell would know that! So why the garlic, and why the turban?" Bella said.
"Not only do the troll incident, and the garlic turban make him suspicious…have you really listened to his stutter? It so fake, remember that kid at the academy that had to transfer cause he was so bullied about his stutter? It was nothing like how Quirell stutters, his stutters are so calculated it's sad! If his stutter is fake, why is he faking?" Bella said passionately.
"There is only one reason I can think of for pretending to have a stutter and it is so that people will over look him when looking for possible thieves. I mean really, who would suspect P-p-p-poor s-s-s-stuttering Q-Quirell?" Bella asked stuttering eerily similar to Quirrel to make her point.
Harry looked at her dumbfounded, "Well…wow. I knew you were smart but sometimes Bells you're just plain scary." He said slowly.
"Why thank you dear brother mine," Bella said happily, "Now what we really need to figure out is Quirell's motives."
Harry blinked, "I thought that would be obvious, infinite wealth and life from a stone. Who wouldn't want that?" he said.
"Normally I would agree with you, if I didn't think he was the one who cursed your broom." Bella said.
"Okay, I don't follow, why does that matter? He might have thought I knew too much and had to cover his bases." Harry said.
"That doesn't make any sense, you didn't even suspect him and he is trying to be covert. The last thing he would need would be for a body to show up and bring a whole lot more investigators into Hogwarts. So why risk everything going after you? Why would he do that, risk being discovered to try killing you? What would that accomplish?" Bella asked.
"I don't know, but I have a feeling you're about to tell me." Harry said.
"I have a theory, I think Quirell isn't the one who is truly after the stone…I think he wants it for someone else. You said yourself that you thought Snape wanted it for Voldemort, its stands to reason that Quirell might as well. Quirell doesn't have enough power or skill to do what he is doing now. Someone is helping him, someone we wouldn't notice or see, and I think that is Voldemort." Bella said seriously.
An ominous silence came between them as Harry contemplated Bella's suspicions. It was a lot to take in but suddenly a lot more was starting to make sense. Suddenly his headaches made sense when he went to Quirell's class, the troll, and Harry wasn't sure what to do with this information now that he had it. "What do we do?" Harry asked at a lose.
"Well, we can't really do anything can we? All we have are suspicions and not enough evidence. If we went running to another teacher with this even Dumbledore, they'll just dismiss us. They'll think we're crazy kids that are sticking their noses where it doesn't belong," Bella said.
"But what do we do? We can't let Quirell get the stone." Harry said determinedly.
"We watch him; I don't think Quirell will make a move with Dumbledore here. He has messed up too much already to risk going after the stone with Dumbledore here to potentially stop him. So we'll wait until Dumbledore leaves, and get the stone before Quirell can." Bella said.
"I've really missed you," Harry said.
"I know," Bella said as she pulled him into a hug.
After that Harry kept an eye on Quirell and Dumbledore. Everything was winding down, exams were coming up and Hermione had the trio in a tizzy trying to prepare for it. Bella was confident that she knew the material so she was a little more relaxed, she managed to finish her transformation and still spent time with Hagrid. When Hagrid brought up that he was going into the forest to look for an injured unicorn Bella volunteered to help him.
Then Harry decided he was coming along because there was no way in hell he was going to let his sister go into those woods alone…at night…with something out there hurting unicorns. The night was still, it was a good ten days before the full moon so Bella wasn't worried about werewolves. Harry was paranoid though; he even convinced Hagrid to give him a crossbow too and somehow managed to carry it. The crossbow had very obviously been made for Hagrid so it was huge and unruly in Harry's much smaller arms.
They split up when the trail did, admittedly Bella acknowledge it probably wasn't her best idea going out into the woods following a trail of silver blood. It was just the thought of a unicorn out there hurt that put reason and logic on the back burner. Every little girl loved unicorns, beings so pure and good. Bella wanted to help this one, even if it meant heading straight into danger.
Then Harry hissed in pain dropping to his knees as they came upon a gruesome sight, a unicorn fighting weakly as a cloaked 'man' or thing sucked horribly from a gash on its neck. Harry was down, and Bella was spitting angry without really thinking it through she heft up the crossbow. She fired arrows so quickly that the cloak thing barely had time to react, one landed solidly into its shoulder and it screeched as it ran off.
Bella ran to the downed unicorn, it needed her more than Harry did, and tried her best to save it. She focused all her magic on heal; Bella chanted it as her hand glowed over the wound as she tried to stop the blood loss. Harry got up groggily and fired sparks up into the sky to get Hagrid. That's when things got weird, a centaur rushed into the clearing, Harry held him a wand point, Hagrid came barreling in too while the Unicorn grunted as it feebly tried to stand.
Somehow, Bella had managed to save it but the Unicorn was far from healthy. Bella coaxed it to follow her back towards Hogwarts while Harry talked to Hagrid and the centaur. Bella refused to leave the unicorn and tended to it at the stables while Harry went to bed. Hagrid helped her get the unicorn out of the danger zone of it might still die to stable before he crashed too. Bella slumped against the unicorn's flank as the sun rose and passed out.
It seemed like only a minute later Harry was shaking her awake telling her that Dumbledore had gone, Hagrid had told Quirell how to get past Fluffy and they had to stop him from getting the stone. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Bella made to the third floor as quickly as they could…it still wasn't enough. Fluffy was already sleeping and the trapdoor was open. Harry ran and jumped in blindly. Bella followed him cursing up a storm on his stupidity. Ron and Hermione followed soon after.
It seemed like time was speeding up after that, Bella lit the Devil's Snare on fire, Harry caught a key, they went past the troll holding their nose and Ron sacrificed himself in a mad game for Chest. The challenge that stopped them the longest was Snape's logic puzzle and that was only because Harry tried to go on alone. Bella refused to leave him, Hermione left to get help for Ron and them. Harry went through first and then Bella had to wait for a few moments for the bottle to refill.
Those moments were costly and made Bella feel helpless as she listened to her brother fight Quirell. As soon as she could she drank and came barreling through the flames. Quirell's hands were around Harry's neck and he was screaming as Harry held his face in his hands burning him with his touch. Bella didn't think she just acted, transforming into a white wolf she charged Quirell knocking him off her brother. Harry was panting weakly on the ground pain keeping him from moving.
Bella didn't stop, she nipped at Quirell, and they circled each other as she tried not to listen to the parasite on the back of his head. She needed to be bigger and just as Harry managed to haul himself to his feet to help Bella struck. Somehow her magic enlarged her wolf form and she was big enough that she could snap his head off with one bite…so she did without a thought to protect her brother. Then she spit out the head and transformed back horrified at what she had done.
A black mist screamed at them as it fled from Quirell's body and they both watched it numbly. It had all happened so fast, Bella tasted the blood on her tongue and Quirell's deformed head stared up at them morbidly. "What am I going to do?" Bella asked Harry weakly as she scrubbed her face free of blood. "I killed him…what am I going to do Harry? They'll throw me into Azkaban for this…" she said weakly pale as a ghost.
Harry had a hard look on his face as he marched up to Quirell's corpse and began to burn it up impossibly fast with his magic. He vanished the ashes, cleared the air and cleaned up the room…scrubbing away the blood like it was nothing. "No they will not, nothing happened Bella," Harry said as he kneeled in front of her looking her dead in the eyes, "Nothing happened Bella, we came stopped Quirell, he ran, we don't know where or how…cause we will be knocked out when they get here. Do you understand? Nothing happened." He said fiercely.
Bella nodded weakly letting Harry clean the blood from her mouth and clothes before he knocked her out. Then he slammed all his magic out in a big rush shattering the mirror and draining him so completely he crumbled into a heap on the floor. That was how Dumbledore found them when he finally made it; the two of them passed out in a heap near each other…no sign of Quirell anywhere. The mirror was shattered but the stone was safe.
When the two of them woke up a few days later Bella didn't say a word and Harry pushed the truth about what had happened so far down inside of him…refusing to acknowledge it for fear of losing his sister that Dumbledore found nothing when he looked into Harry's thoughts. Bella stared at a wall listening to Dumbledore talk to her brother and wondered why she felt so numb. She had killed someone, bitten someone's head off, shouldn't she be feeling something…anything. Bella was so far inside herself that she didn't even realize how suspicious Dumbledore's evasive answers were.
She stayed in the Hospital wing until the end of term and then Harry picked her up to take her to the express to go back to their relatives. He tried to get some reaction from her by telling her about Gryffindor winning the house cup and even tried to get her angry at Dumbledore's refusal to let them stay at Hogwarts. Bella reacted a bit when he told her about Dumbledore being the one to leave them at the Dursley's but then she shut down again soon after. It was going to be a long summer.
A.N.: Holy S**t I did not think I would finish this so soon! AH First year down six to go! Let me know what you think about this story. I'd love some more feedback! Reviews are much appreciated, special thanks to Mangal2012, Lady Ashwinder, Kenjo, SesshomaruPegasus, LoveInTheBattleField, and Mimiru for being my first reviewers! Thanks for your encouragement!