Chapter three: A curious turn of events
The hour passed by and Severus continued to observe the girl, who sat all day long on a computer and from time to time went around the bookstore picking books and placing them back. Tedious work, obviously. He saw her more than once yawn tiredly and rubbing her eyes under the glasses she wore while she was sitting on the chair. The sun started to go down and the shadows got larger by the minute.
Laura looked up at the clock on the wall and let out a tired yawn. Thank God, is 7 already! Time to go home… She put her black sweater on while her coworkers turned off the lights and placed her Converse messenger bag on her shoulder. Looking at it for a second she paused to think of the funny turns life took.
She had always been a weird kid, ever since she was little. When she was 6 years old she had a dream about a truck killing her dog. Little Laura woke up screaming in the middle of the night and took her mother a lot of hugs and soothing words to ease her fear. But a week later, when she was playing on her front yard, her dog ran out the house (something it never did before) and a dump truck killed it right in front of her eyes.
She never had friends while she was growing up. Her older sister taught her how to read when she was 5 and ever since her best friends were her books. Every kid in her school use to tease her, calling her the walking encyclopedia, just because she always knew the answers of the questions being asked to her. And there were always the accidents. She seemed to black out from time to time, waking up in different places. Her mother took her to the doctor and it diagnosed that something on her organism was draining her energy from time to time, making her black out.
What Laura never knew was that the people she called her family weren't her relatives at all. Normal young witches or wizards often used their powers under duress, like when Harry Potter disappeared the glass from the snake pit, making his cousin Dudley fall right into it. Or like Hermione Granger, who levitated a boy who was trying to steal her books when she was walking back home one day. Kids with normal magical abilities did than, but since Laura was more powerful than normal and living with so many suppressed emotions for so long, the way for her magic to show itself was through the blackouts.
Laura's life was never easy. Her foster mother married a young accountant out of love, and also wanting to leave a poor family. What the woman never knew was that her husband had lots of affairs, starting from the same day they were married. When Laura's older brother was born, her mother gave birth to him three months before his due date. Laura´s older sister, Silvia, was her mother's favorite. She was always the one who kept her toys in order and doing her chores perfectly.
When Albus Dumbledore found himself in the need of a place to leave his only granddaughter, he searched for a family whose genetic features were closer to his grandchild's parents. Using several memory charms, he allowed the family to believe that Laura was their third child.
So Laura grew up believing the people she lived with were her real family. But deep inside she knew things were different. Her foster mother was living with three children, a cheating husband with a drinking problem, so her temper was also very volatile. Laura was a really active child, so she was always being scolded for doing a lot of mess. Her relationship with her father was a distant one, only seeing him on the weekends, when he stayed home in the morning, leaving early to go partying with his friends.
Laura loved her parents. They were not perfect, but her mother always kept the family together. Her father was just a presence, but he never did anything for Laura to disapprove him.
Besides he was the one with all the money, Laura thought as she bid her coworkers goodnight and walked to the bus stop. Her mother used to scold her for being so cold and a calculating person. Albus Dumbledore never knew that his son had fathered a Slytherin through and through. Even though she protected her family above everything else, Laura also knew that she had to play her cards right, otherwise people would just take advantage of her. She learned not to trust anyone, unless they have proved themselves. She learned that the hard way, but she was kinda glad that the cloth of innocence was taken off her eyes.
The night she learned that lesson, Laura was 9 years old. She had gone to bed as usual at 8, but around 11 p.m. she woke up hearing voices from the kitchen on the first floor of her house. She walked down the stairs, and found her mother serving her father dinner. She remembered going to greet her dad, who was in the kitchen looking for something. Suddenly she saw the item her father was looking for and bended to pick it up and stood up, unaware of the fact that her father was standing behind her and leaning to pick the same item when she got up. She remembered hitting her father on the face, making his glasses fall to the floor. The next thing she was aware of was a pain on her face and the cold sensation of the wall. A trickle of blood was running on the corner of her mouth. Her father had been so angered by the accident that had punched her on the face making her hit the wall and her head in the process.
She had blurry memories from that moment, but as if she was in a fog, she remembered her parents arguing and his father slapping her mom, yelling at them both to leave him alone.
Ever since that night Laura had lost all the innocence she had left. The world was no longer the safe place she thought it might be, but instead she was forced to mature, very quickly. A parade of emotions went through her 9 year old mind. First it was fear, the primal fear that made her sleep with a knife under her pillow for three months and be afraid of talking to her dad for 4 years. Then it was the resent, which she learned that could be good if she managed to handle the guilt her father felt at that time. Then it was only the fierce determination, as she vowed that she would never let a man put a hand on her without getting the proper punishment. Thankfully she was still and underage witch at the time, or a magical oath would have taken place.
Ever since she had changed, a lot. Like a true Slytherin, she kept her emotions in check, not letting people know exactly how she was feeling. She also started to learn basic self-defense, taking punches to the walls to toughen up her knuckles, high kicks and stuff like that. Her classmates on the technical high school she went to used to joke that she was the only girl that could punch someone harder than any other boy they met. She was a loner, having only a few friends, which coincidentally were the ones who helped her go through the hard studies of electronics. She loved her friends, but somehow she was more concerned about taking care of herself.
Walking through the rows of bars on the dark alley that took to her bus stop, Severus followed the girl closely. It was a really bad neighborhood, drunken college students celebrating the fact that it was Friday. He saw the girl dodge several party goers as she walked swiftly to the main road and waiting for the light to let her pass. Suddenly a long haired boy practically tackled her, making Severus draw his wand while he moved closer to her. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the girl punching the guy playfully while she laughed at him.
"Seriously JD you should be more careful when you say hello, you scared me to death!" The boy laughed and moved his long hair from his face, showing his green eyes and hugging her.
"What would be the fun in that? Come on, I need you to do something for me…"
He started walking with her towards a crowded bar, but instead of going through the front door, they went through the alley in the back. Casting an invisibility charm, he followed them closely. Going to an alley for a quick shag, probably. They opened the door with the sign "Employees Only" and entered the club, closely trailed by Severus. They entered a room, where a bunch of long-haired punks waited for them. He saw how they all came to greet the girl.
"Yo, Laura girl, you are finally here!!"
"Wasup baby girl?"
She hugged all the boys and sat in a stool, while one of them handed her a drink. She quickly sniffed it.
"Is not poisoned you know" JD said to her, while she punched him again.
"I know smartass, but I can't drink something too smelly, then I would go home smelling like a bar…"
"… and you would get in trouble, yeah, yeah, we all know the story. Is just vodka with Sprite girl."
"So," she said while she took a swig from the glass, "What do I have to do? Play the guitar? Did JD got his fingers hit with the door again?"
They all laughed remembering when their guitarist got his fingers bandaged for a week. Since he was the one who taught her how to play the guitar, she had to practice with the band for all the gigs of that week. JD scowled at them, making them laugh even harder.
"Actually no, we need ya for something else."
"Sound checking?"
"Nope"
"Light show?"
"Mmm, nope."
"Then what?"
They all looked at each other and JD talked.
"We want you to sing."
Laura stood up, knocking the glass in her hand.
"No! I told ya, I can't sing!"
Jd stood also, getting close to her.
"We heard you sing. You are good, whether you like it or not."
"But I've heard what you guys sing, I can't sing that low. My voice is mezzo-soprano, I can't go that low."
"Then we will play any song you want. Besides what we do now are covers, since the next album is not even out yet."
She cocked an eyebrow at them.
"Any song I want?"
"Any song you want, as long as it is not a girly song. Or reguetton."
"Fine, I'll do it."
Severus stood there while the band guys cheered and clapped at her and she made a mock bow.
"So, let's get this one thing straight. I am doing this because of you guys, nothing more and nothing less. But let me tell ya that this is a one time thing only. But…"
She looked at them with a pleading expression on her face. They all sighed and said at once:
"What is it?"
"Not even one girl song?? I am a girl after all…"
"Which one"
"I love rock n´ roll?"
They all sighed again.
"Fine"
Severus missed the rest of the conversation, since he walked out the room and finished the spell. Then he walked to the front of the club and got in. He walked within the crowd and saw the girls he saw her with earlier. He walked towards the bar and ordered a whiskey while he sat on a stool. Soon all the music stopped and a brunette walked on stage towards the microphone on it.
"Now, what you all have been waiting for, from Canada, on their yearly tour, here it comes, Doom Circus!"
The crowd cheered and got closer to the stage, while a guy whispered something on the brunette's ears. She soon took the mic again.
"I have just been informed that the vocalist of the band cannot perform due a really bad flu, but don't worry! The show goes on and from the first time on the band's career, their backup guitarist is gonna perform. Ladies and gentleman please put your hands together for a national talent, miss Laura García!"
The light went off and a voice started singing.
I got a lot to say to you
Yeah, I got a lot to say
I notice your eyes are always glued to me
Keeping them here
And it makes no sense at all
Severus' black eyes followed the curvaceous figure that appeared on stage, sitting on a stool, all dressed in black, with low heeled boots and spiked bracelets on her wrists.
They taped over your mouth
Scribbled out the truth with their lies
Your little spies
They taped over your mouth
Scribble out the truth with their lies
Your little spies
She stood towards the long haired boy that tackled her earlier and leaned against him.
Soon she whispered right into his ear, with a low and seductive voice
Crush, crush, crush, crushcrushcrush!
. Then she moved back in front on the crowd.
Nothing compares to a quiet evening alone
Just the one to I was just counting on
That never happened; I guess I'm dreaming again
Let's be more than this.
She started moving around the stage, making the crowd jump at her mark, smiling until her eyes caught his, making her stop for a second. But before she could react, the rest of the song started again.
If you wanna play it like a game
Well come on, come on let's play
Cause I rather waste my life pretending
Than have to forget you for one whole minute
They taped over your mouth
Scribbled out the truth with their lies
Your little spies.
They taped over your mouth
Scribbled out the truth with their lies
Your little spies.
He saw her dance around the stage, noticing that a black haired boy was standing next to him, with two of his friends.
"Is that?"
"Yeah, that is her. I cheated on her because she was so cold and never let me go pass second base, but I'm telling ya guys, after seeing her like this, I am sooo gonna get some with her tonight."
The guys laughed and nodded enthusiastically. Severus heard the other guys mumbling "Yeah, me too", while the girl continued singing.
Crush, crush, crush, crushcrushcrush!
Nothing compares to a quiet evening alone
Just the one to I was just counting on
That never happened; I guess I'm dreaming again
Let's be more than this now!
Rock and roll, baby, don't you know that we are all alone now
I need something to sing about
Rock and roll, don't you know baby we are all alone now
I need something to sing about
Rock and roll, don't you know baby we are all alone now
Gimme something to sing about!
Nothing compares to a quiet evening alone
Just the one to I was just counting on
That never happened; I guess I'm dreaming again
Let's be more than this.
More than this.
The song ended and the lights went black. When they were back on, the group of boys next to Severus was gone, and apparently, she was gone too. Walking towards the back, he couldn't find her anywhere, and only saw the band sitting for a while, the long haired guy holding his cheek, while the other ones laughed.
"Where is she?"
The group turned to see him standing in the doorway.
"If you are looking for Laura, she already left. Apparently she does not take lies very well. She found out that we lied about Will being sick and all, so she slapped Jd really hard and left. What do you want to now anyway?"
Severus ignored him and walked to the backdoor, opened it and got to the alley. Walking towards the street, he heard voices. He approached the source and saw that the threesome from the bar had her surrounded. And judging by her look, she was scared.
"Come on, Laura I know you are missing me." The inebriated black haired guy placed his hand on her thigh and squeezed it. Soon the look of fear on her eyes changed to a scowl and she pushed him back.
"If I remember correctly, you were the one who dumped me, Alex. Besides, I already told you to leave me alone!"
She narrowed her eyes, looking at every one of them in the eye.
"Get out of my way."
Alex stood up and gave her an evil smile.
"Do you think that I am gonna let you reject me again? Specially after seeing you move like a slut on that stage? I want you to give me what you denied me for months and something for my friends here too."
He made a move to grab her, but was received with a punch straight to his nose, making him stumble back, while blood flowed down his face. He lifted his hand and saw it was covered in blood.
"You bitch! You think you are so tough? Let's see what you can do against the three of us."
Severus saw as the girl stood in a defensive position, her eyes narrowed and challenging them to attack her. He knew that no matter how strong she seemed to be, that she had no chance against three men, all by herself. And his assumption proved to be correct. While she was fighting against the first guy, one of the other goons walked behind her and hit her with a wooden plank, making her fall to the ground. Severus quickly walked around the corner.
"What is going on here?"
The three goons stood and turned to face him.
"Get out of here grandpa, we are setting a score here."
He gave them his best Potions master scowl.
"Three men against a little girl? That is not setting a score. It is an ambush!"
The two goons stood threateningly towards Severus, in a way that reminded him of Crabbe and Goyle. On the meantime, Alex was grabbing the girl from the floor. She started to stir and when she was fully awake, the boy held her by the throat. She started to struggle against the hold, but was stopped when he squeezed her throat, cutting her air supply.
Severus took out his wand and pointed it against the two goons.
"Let her go." He hissed at them. They only laughed.
"Or what? You are gonna spank us with that stick?"
He flicked his wand at them and cast two stunners. Both guys fell face first to the floor, while the third one kept his hold on Laura. She could feel as her strength was leaving her and her brain started to panic.
Before Severus had a chance of casting another spell, suddenly the guy started screaming and the air was filled with the smell of burned flesh. Smoke rose from the hand that held the girl from her throat and he released her, making her fall to the floor in all fours.
Severus saw that the boy held his burned hand with the good one. It was black, with red spots.
"What did you do to me?" He yelled at the girl, who was coughing to clear the burning feeling on her throat.
Severus stood forward and cast an Obliviate on the guy, then a stunner. He didn't heal his hand though. Then he kneeled next to the girl.
"Are you Ok?"
She sat with difficulty and leaned against a wall.
"I'm fine. My head hurts like hell, but I'm ok."
Severus flicked his wand, using a medi-witch spell and checked her head. She had no concussions, but the injury was bleeding. Moving her hair aside, he saw that the cut was around two inches long.
"Can you walk?"
She tried to stand up, but her knees buckled and she stumbled. He caught her and let her use his body for support.
"I guess that answers my question. I live nearby, so maybe we can heal that properly."
She just nodded and they walked. Somehow, Severus knew that training this witch was going to be a little more complicated than usual.
And it would be.
