Sorry it's late, but, I've been busy with lots of exams and stuff, but thank you for all the kind reviews! Can't believe so many people like it! Heh!
Word Count: 2453
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter!
Saving Fred Weasley
Chapter 4
This. Was not. Happening.
She was going to die.
There was no way.
No way at all.
Oh my sweet Jesus above.
She couldn't do this.
Nope.
Nada.
NONONONONONONO
The walls felt cold against Sophia's bare arms as she quickly removed her jacket to prevent herself from over-heating. She thumped her head against to wall. Once. Twice. Thrice. The sound of her self-inflicted injury seemed to echo down the empty hallway and bounce off of the walls with great speed, so great in fact, the echo barely lasted a few seconds at most before coming to an inevitable end.
Every now and then, a barely audible small drop of water would sound from somewhere far yet somehow near, and this occasional noise was surely beginning to make her go insane. Her nose twitched at the sweet, earthy scent that hung in the air, a scent that she was not familiar with.
Why would she be?!
Why was she here?!
How did she get here?!
When did she get here?!
Where the hell did Harry go?!
Wait, who the hell is Harry?!
What is the meaning of life?!
Alright, so now she was hyperventilating, juuuuuusst great.
And now she was looking at her funny.
Okay, you need to calm down Sophia chastised herself, using the technique her brother had once shown her as she used to suffer from a slight case of asthma when she was younger, but it was gone now. She sure as hell didn't want an asthma attack at this point.
Her brother use to have it too, but he had it much worse, so that's why he knew how to deal with it. He at least had some compassion for her to not let her 'choke on her own breath', as he would put it. But this didn't mean that they loved each other and looked out for each other like best friends.
Ew, that would be going too far.
However, there was reason for her to be so panicked all of the sudden, no, she wasn't just mentally unstable, there was a reason behind it this time, and Sophia felt that any other normal humanoid would react in the same exact way as far as she was concerned.
She was meeting Albus Dumbledore.
…
Waving awkwardly at the portrait before her that oddly shared an uncanny resemblance with the Mona Lisa, Sophia let out a long sigh and slid down the wall as 'Lisa' frowned at her before getting up and leaving. Clearly the portrait not taking a liking to being in her presence. Sophia rubbed the sore spot on her head where she had thumped it against the wall, maybe hitting her head against a stone wall was not the best choice in life she had ever made, considering she was just beginning to get over her minor concussion.
It was just all happening too fast, one minute she was lolly-gagging in Diagon Alley with the Harry Potter, having tea with her newly found best friend, and the next minute, Hagrid was dragging her off to go see Dumbledore after waving Harry goodbye on the train. Sophia felt like a naughty student who was about to get a slap-to-the-face type lecture from a strict headmaster.
Her heart suddenly dropped as she realised she may not see Harry ever again, or get to meet the other characters for that matter. What if Dumbledore found out that she wasn't from their universe? And, he got really angry for her messing with the delicate balance of the laws of time or whatever, and he sent her into a dark abyss of space for the rest of eternity without a sense of time, or who she even was?!
Oh god, how she missed the simplicity of things such as homework.
"Professor Dumbledore wishes to see you now."
Sophia's head flew out of the place between her knees and landed with a soft thunk on the wall behind her. Standing up quickly, she turned to address the person behind her, and soon found her self staring at "Lisa" who stared right back at her.
" 'scuse me?" she managed to slurr out, her head feeling particularly sore after that hit.
Lisa rolled her eyes at her incompetence.
"Professor Dumbledore wishes to see you now." she repeated herself word for word, though spoke to her as if addressing a toddler. Boy, Sophia would rather be stuck in a toddler's body than hers at the moment, surely Dumbledore would not want to harm a baby? Voldermort, sure, Harry had the proof literally scarred onto his forehead, but Dumbledore?
"Thanks." Sophia mumbled in reply before turning to the gargoyle.
Without even waiting for the gargoyle to tell her the password, Sophia declared confidently in a loud and clear voice:
"Sherbet Lemon."
Without having to turn around to know that the portrait was shocked by her knowledge, Sophia stepped onto the moving, circular staircase, deciding it would be better to ignore any questions aimed at her on how she knew such things that even the most knowledgeable people would not know.
…
She could just imagine Harry's description of Dumbledore's office running through her head,
beautiful circular room...
full of funny little noises...
A number of curious silver instruments...
whirring and emitting little puffs of smoke...
The walls covered with portraits...
an enormous claw-footed desk...
Somehow she thought that J.K Rowling didn't do the office justice.
There was just so much...stuff!
Sophia couldn't even begin to describe what she saw around her, because honestly, at that moment she felt like an illiterate monkey, who was unable to articulate anything she saw. Why a monkey? Well, she felt like that at any moment she was to open her mouth, she would begin to make strange noises that would greatly resemble those of a monkey. Rubbing her tired eyes, she could not believe that she had not yet woken up, in what world did a dream even last this long? And, a realistic one at that. Well, as realistic as Harry Potter could be. Well, no one here had yet to sprout pink fluffy wings and shout "To infinity and beyond!"
It embarrassed her to think that she actually had a dream like that once...
She had dreamed about Albus Dumbledore once, but of course, all dream Dumbledore did was go on about some nonsense about the balance of the universe, and then he promptly lobbed a Sherbet Lemon at her, probably because she had started laughing...
"Miss White, I presume?"
The sudden presence of another person caused Sophia to drop a History of Magic book she hadn't realised she had been caressing until that moment.
Dropping to her knees to pick it up, she fumble clumsily with her shaking hands in an attempt to pick up the book. Glancing upwards, she saw none other than Albus Dumbledore, standing as proud and as tall as ever.
Her mouth promptly dropped open in a way that strongly resembled a shocked fish...
Well, at least she didn't faint this time.
Before she even realised what she was doing, Sophia had stood up, and bowed to him, all the while stuttering out barely comprehensive apologies.
I'm so sorry, it wasn't my fault! I promise
It just happened, and here I am! Funny right?
I know you're angry and all, but please don't banish me to another universe!
I honestly have no idea what I'm doing here! Can't remember a thing you see!
And she continued on like this, until she heard something strange...
Someone was laughing at her...
Oh dear god! Dumbledore was chuckling at her!
"Please, have a seat," he said, gesturing to an empty space.
Sophia looked at him in confusion, before he waved his hand, and a wooden chair appeared out of nowhere.
"Woah." Sophia whispered in awe, as she ever so gently sat down on the newly formed chair.
Dumbledore smiled slightly at her expression, that ever so famous twinkle of his shone brightly in his eyes.
Wow, Sophia thought to herself, I made Dumbledore's eyes twinkle! Score 1 for Sophia!
"Now, Miss White," Dumbledore began as he gently sat down on the chair behind his grand desk, "I have been informed that you performed a spell well beyond your wizarding years."
Sophia merely frowned in confusion.
"Sorry? I don't understand."
"I have been told by Rubeus Hagrid, and three other witnesses at The Leaky Cauldron that you apparated there, with every body part in tact, in fact."
Oh, that was it. She had remembered this word had been brought up a lot in some conversations after she had appeared here. But, apparation? Everything was beginning to sound too far fetched, even though this was a dream. Even her subconscious knows the sad truth of the reality of her situation. Sophia was not, nor will ever be, a wizard. It was simply impossible.
"With all due respect, Professor Dumbledore, sir," Sophia began with a nervous demeanour, but, a nod from Dumbledore gave her a slight boost in confidence, "I have no idea what you're talking about." This was only half true, she couldn't exactly point out that she knew what apparation was even though this was a dream, but, she still was very confused.
"Ah, so you must be muggle-born." Dumbledore concluded.
Well, yes, she technically was that, but, she was also technically muggle herself.
"Muggle-born?" Sophia questioned, feigning ignorance.
Dumbledore, again, smiled at her reaction.
"A wizard born within a family of non-wizards."
Wait...WHAT?!
"A wizard?" Sophia questioned, chuckling nervously, "Wizards don't exist. They belong in TV shows, films, myths!...and books."
"Yes, you have to be a wizard." Dumbledore confirmed with finality in his tone, "How else would you explain the apparation? And oh!" Dumbledore suddenly exclaimed with great excitement in his voice, "for one so young to perform an apparation spell? You must be a powerful wizard indeed."
This was not happening. Sophia...a wizard? Sure, it was her dream to be a wizard, more so than anything. But...that was the point, it was her dream.Of course, she had dreamed like this before, except it was much less vivid, and Lady Gaga was somehow thrown into the mix. No. This had to be a dream. It just had to be.
"Sir," the sound of her voice causing Dumbledore to once again draw his attention to her, "I am no wizard. I can just about tie my shoelaces! Let alone be a wizard! I have to be dreaming."
"Dreaming?" Dumbledore seemed intrigued by this sudden analysis, "Would that make me imaginary? Good heavens. Am I not real? Well, this certainly puts a twist on things, don't you agree?"
Sophia stared back at him blankly, lost for words.
"Well, I, er, I suppose, erm..."
"Well, dream or not," Dumbledore began, interrupting her, "You are still a young child who does not remember anything of her past, and her parents are missing...yes..." Dumbledore trailed off, lightly stroking his beard, "Something very strange must have happened, and until I figure out what..."
This was it. Goodbye cruel world...
"You must stay with someone until I am able to locate your parents."
Sophia opened her eyes, (she had closed them so she could brace for impact), and stared back at Dumbledore with a dumbfounded expression.
"Sorry, what?" she asked, thoroughly confused. No dramatic speech about the delicate balance of time and space? No banishment to an empty abyss of darkness?
"Yes, as you are only young you must stay with a responsible guardian."
"But then what?" Sophia asked, but her eyes widened as a sudden light bulb lit up inside of her mind.
Quickly reaching into her damp jean trouser pockets (thats what you get for sitting on the floor Sophia!), she pulled out an important object that she knew would influence her future in this world for however long she was going to be there.
Her Hogwarts acceptance letter.
Dumbledore took the slightly creased envelope from her outstretched hands and inspected it with a careful eye.
"Well, this is quite peculiar..." he murmured under his breath.
Sophia peered up at him with widened with fright, eyes. Had he figured it out? Did he know who she was? Where she had come from?
"How so?" she questioned, but it sounded more like a squeak.
"Professor McGonagall never mentioned a Miss White would be starting Hogwarts this upcoming term."
Uh oh...
However, Dumbledore merely shrugged.
Shrugged
S-H-R-U-G-G-E-D!
"No matter," he said, handing the envelope back to Sophia, who was gaping at him like a fish, "I suppose all there is left to say is I look forward to welcoming you to Hogwarts this year, Miss Sophia."
…
By definition, acute stress disorder is the result of a traumatic event in which the person experiences or witnesses an event that causes the victim/witness to experience extreme, disturbing or unexpected fear, stress or pain, and that involves or threatens serious injury, perceived serious injury or death to themselves or someone else.
Although the event was less traumatic, and her feelings were less intense than this, Sophia was sure she was in shock.
She was going to go to Hogwarts?! The Hogwarts?! Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry?! Hogwarts, Hogwarts, hoggy-hoggy-Hogwarts?!
Sophia's mouth opened and closed several times, but no sound came out as Dumbledore began to explain to her that she would be staying with Andrew Blotts from Flourish and Blotts. As it turns out, he and Dumbledore were quite good friends, for a reason that remained unknown to Sophia. It seemed that Dumbledore knew everyone, but Sophia was cool with that. She wasn't going to ask how they knew each other, out of politeness...oh, and the fact that she couldn't talk! Andrew clutched her shoulder tightly and placed a firm weight upon her when he noticed that she was beginning to sway on the spot.
Sophia didn't remember much of what happened after that, it was like that feeling you get when you stand up too fast, and colours danced across your line of sight. However, she had brief flash backs of what happened on that day: Andrew took her back to Flourish and Blotts, made her a cup of tea, though she only stared at it when he handed it to her, for an hour. Well, at least it felt like an hour. Andrew had probably thought that it was just all too much for her tiny eleven-year-old brain to handle. Oh. That was another thing. She was eleven again.
It's a strange little world, right?
Before she had fallen asleep that night, one question, and one question only circled around in her mind.
When will all of this be over?
Oh Sophia. It's only just beginning.
…
Hoooow was that?
Again I am super sorry for taking so long to update but exams suck and all that jazz
I apologise if there are any grammatical errors because I didn't want to leave you guys waiting any longer and I need to revise for my English lit exam tomorrow!
ChibiChesire: Glad you are enjoying it! Hope to hear again from you soon, sorry for the long wait :)
Ceti H. Black- Don't worry, I will continue but updates will be a little infrequent until the summer holidays because I have a hell of a lot of revision to do and exams to sit. But, thank you for the review :)
Snowflake888: Aw thank you so much! I'm glad you are enjoying the story, and I shall continue, sorry for the long wait :D
1emotionalunicorn: I am so sorry that I have not replied to your PM! I had it all typed out, but then my laptop lost charge and I lost it, and I have been crazy busy with school work so I haven't had the chance to reply. Ah, yes, Andrew, well wait and see my friend :p And the whole not changing the story is something that Sophia is going to work really hard on but things will not always go as planned as that is the beauty of it! About Hagrid and Harry, I'm so glad you thought it was good! I was originally going to have her meet Draco, but then I couldn't really fit it into the chapter so that part was scrapped. Thank you for the review my friend, really sorry I haven't updated in a while, but I hope you can find it within yourself to forgive me? I give you a virtual cook ;D
R.J. North- Well, ello there! *waves* Haven't seen you around these parts before! Thank you for the review! Yes, I'm glad you agree with Sophia's beliefs (and mine too!) we are merely passionately devoted fans as you had put it! I'm really glad you like Sophia! Phew! Her brother? Don't worry, every good character has got to have a flash back and or memory every now and then, so there will be more of her brother and more of her back story! Do not fear my friend. I can assure you that Ron and Sophia have a lot in common, so we shall see where that takes us! I'm really excited for her to meet the twins too! But I can neither confirm or deny that she will be meeting them on the train...*cue mysterious music* Also, I'm excited for Sophia to meet Draco and Pansy, Pansy and Sophia will not be hitting it off, let's just leave it at that...and Draco...well...you'll just have to wait and see my friend! So glad you're enjoying the story, sorry I took so long to update, and I hope to hear from you again soon! :D
ReaderxGirl789- Aw, gee, thank you so much! I love that you love Sophia that much! I was worried when I first wrote Sophia's character, but I'm glad you think that she seems real. About not buying her stuff, what you said is pretty much spot on, at that point, she thinks that she is dreaming, but now...well you'll just have to wait and see ;p Thank you so much for the review and I hope to hear from you again soon :D
LPeck- Hello there! Thank you so much for the review! About your question, at this point, Sophia still thinks she is dreaming, so she doesn't see the point in getting school stuff when she will not need if she was dreaming. She would much rather be gallivanting about and see everything she would want to see before she inevitably wakes up. Again, thank you for the review, sorry I took so long to update and I hope to hear from you again soon :D
Well, that's chapter 4 done and dusted my friends! Please review, and I'll try and get chapter 5 done ASAP.
Cheers :)