Jennifer's note: Sorry it's taken me awhile to update. Writer's block perhaps? I hope you like this chapter!
Chapter Nine
"Charlotte! Charlotte!"
I spotted Charlotte amongst all the first years being rounded up by the prefects to show them to their dormitories for the first time. She was talking to a boy I didn't recognize and grudgingly turned her head to look at me. I stopped in front of her and smiled, "hey."
"Yes?" She said raising her eyebrow. She patted the boy's arm and whispered for him to meet up with her later, shooting me an annoyed look. What was up with her…
"What house are you in? I missed the sorting…"
She snorted, "yeah, I noticed. Nice grand entrance."
Why was she being such a witch?
"If you must know, I'm in Slytherin."
"What?"
"Oh, now you want to talk?" She rolled her eyes and just smirked, "I'll see you around Jules." She patted my arm and turned to leave me in the crowd.
Great, she was mad at me because I left her on the train. I had totally forgotten… And now she was in the same house as Draco…Well I guess now she could make a pass at him whenever she wanted and I wouldn't be there…I had seen him walk down to the dungeons with his cronies. I was talking with Oliver and he just passed me like I didn't exist.
I almost laughed out loud at how bizarre my first day here was. It was like I was in a parallel universe where suddenly Charlotte and Draco both hated me (although I could never be sure if Charlotte liked me in the first place) and I was already getting in trouble with an unlikely group of friends.
This was going to make for an interesting year…I sighed and tried to my find my way to the dormitories.
My entire scholastic career consisted of my mother tutoring me at home. She taught me dancing…and algebra…and literature… and the like. The basics. I basically rolled out of bed and studied when I pleased everyday. So, to the say the least I was very…very…unprepared for this.
"Julia! Julia wake up! Don't you have class?" Angelina shook me awake. It was eight o'clock.
"Wh-what? Where's my schedule." My words sounded garbled, thick with sleep.
Angelina put the parchment next to my face, "hurry! You have potions first! I have to go! Meet with us at lunch!"
"What?" I finally opened my eyes. Sun filtered in through the window and lit up the room. I was still in my bed with the sheets twisted around me, and my hair wild about my face. Angelina was gone. I took the parchment. I scanned it for my first class. First hour was beginning potions with professor Severus Snape.
I. Nearly. Screamed.
I jumped out of bed grabbing my socks, button down shirt, and skirt. I quickly got ready shoving a few books into my bag and my wand and put on my shoes. My shirt wasn't tucked in properly and my ties was still hanging around my bag.
"Oh god oh god oh god." I murmured over and over again as I tripped my way down the stairs to the common room and out of the portrait.
I nearly slipped and fell down the stairs as I looked at my schedule, half jogging half fixing my tie. I had no effing idea where potions was.
This was a complete disaster.
I frantically looked at my watch and it was ten past eight. I settled for remembering where his office was near the dungeons so his classroom probably wasn't far from it.
There weren't any students in sight as I ran down the marble floored halls and vaulted ceilings of the ancient castle. The sun sparkled through the stained glass and I caught a reflection of myself.
Oh god….
I looked like a train wreck, my hair looked like I just had been ambushed by chimaeras and I didn't even get a chance to brush my teeth.
I ran down a few flights of stairs and finally reached a hall lit with torches. I heard Snape's distant drawl… My stomach felt queasy and I felt like I was going to be nauseous. I had never been late to a class before let alone been in a real class with real students and the worst, the tyrant Snape. I wanted to just ditch and go upstairs and hide for a four hours. And shower. I internally prayed and begged for a divine force to just kill me there. I stood in the doorway and Snape was lecturing, all the students bent over their desks scribbling frantically with their quills. He looked as daunting as ever.
I tried to tip toe my way in as silent as possible but I wasn't even past the doorway when he spoke.
"Ah. Ms. Blaire. It seems wherever you go you have a constant inclination for trouble and showing up late."
"I'm sorry I didn't realize-"
"Take your seat." He was staring at me with his pointing to an empty desk right in front him.
I blushed scarlet, I almost tripped over my feet to my chair. I felt all my classmates staring at me and a few giggled when I tripped.
"And you might want to fix your tie." He was frowning severely at me, pointing to my tie. It was behind my shoulder.
My face was crimson. I went to fix my tie, keeping my head down not looking at anyone. I noticed from the corner of my eye I was sitting next to a bushy hair girl who was looking straight ahead with a quill in her hands. I put my book bag on my table. I just wanted to go back to my bed and mope and restart this mundane morning.
Snape started to speak again. "Dundling celebrities and truant students. Not a very good showing on your part today, Gryffindor. Ten points that will cost you. " I heard a few groans.
Dundling celebrities? Someone in here was famous? I looked around. No one particularly caught my eye... It couldn't have been an actress or a famous quidditch player…I frowned when I noticed none of my new friends were in here, and of course they weren't, they were already well into their courses here.
I kept looking around…Ah.
Draco was there, leaning back in his chair. He wasn't staring at me. He was staring at someone in the middle of the room. The look on Draco's face…It wasn't nice. Quite the contrary, he was staring daggers at a boy with black unkept hair and glasses. He was bent over his desk writing something. I couldn't really see his face. Draco…My stomach did that thing again, it was like it was doing backflips and I felt sick. Whenever I used to see Draco all I ever felt was uncontained happiness and excitement…
Snape was rambling on about something, and staring viciously at me every five seconds, so I decided to just pretend like I was doing something. I took out parchment and my quill and ink and frantically copied whatever the girl next to me was writing. It looked like it would make much more sense than whatever I'd come up with.
When class was over everyone in class was collecting their belongings and Snape just stalked out of the room coldly. I frowned and sighed, shoving everything into my bag. I was completely confident that potions would be that one class I would dread coming to everyday and would probably try to find any excuse to get out of it. Fainting maybe…Or feigning ill…Or death. That could work.
I didn't realize the bushy-haired girl next to me was looking at me.
"Are you alright?" She said, looking at me up and down.
"Huh? Oh…" I was trying to stuff my bag into my cauldron. Awesome.
"I'm just…having a really bad day." I roughly took out my bag and put my cauldron in it, sighing heavily.
The girl smiled gently, "I'm Hermione Granger. I'm really sorry…What's your next class?"
I stuck my hand out, "I'm Julia. And, I'm not sure…"
She shook my hand and we smiled, I frantically took my schedule out.
"I have transfiguration."
"Oh with McGonagall! Great so do I!" She smiled warmly and put her bag over her shoulder.
We were walking out of the room and I noticed her robes, "You're in Gryffindor too?"
"Yes! I noticed you were too yesterday at the um, sorting, I was actually hoping to-"
We were interrupted by a cacophony of voices and a group of students huddled around in a circle around two boys outside of the dungeons.
"Just ignore it, probably a duel." She muttered, I was turning my head ready to just keep walking, but I heard his voice.
"What? Little famous Potter can't take some competition?" I heard Draco drawl maliciously.
"Draco?" I muttered to myself. I turned back leaving Hermione slightly behind to walk to the circle of people. I pushed my way to the front.
I was directly across from Draco, he had his wand pointed at that same boy with the unkept hair and glasses. The boy just looked fiercely annoyed and fed up. He took out his wand out of his pocket.
"Leave me alone."
"Sure, Potty." Draco snickered. He was raising his wand as if to attack him when his eyes flickered onto mine. Our eyes met and I just looked so confused and upset. He looked surprised and embarrassed. His spell was caught in his throat for the moment.
What in Merlin was he doing?
I shook my head. I didn't want to see anymore. I just left the circle and Hermione trailed after me.
I didn't hear Draco and that boy he was fighting with arguing anymore so maybe I got there in time…Still, I was so put out with Draco. I didn't want to think about him. Everytime I did it made me think about how betrayed I felt.I thought I used to know him. I didn't know who this vicious creature was. My best friend was gone.
"Hey Jules!"
I sat next to Fred and Oliver at the Gryffindor table for lunch. The table was already laden with a wide and overbearing assortment of food. I just sunk down next to them sighing. Hermione sat across from me trying to smile at me. I had spent the hour in transfiguration whispering to her about Draco and I in between lecture. She listened very carefully and it was just refreshing to vent to someone. I was glad to have someone who understood.
"Hey guys."
"How was your first day Jules?" Fred said, squeezing my shoulder. He was gnawing on a piece of chicken.
"It was alright…" Hermione gave me a sympathetic look while helping herself to some food.
"And I'm pretty sure Snape is going to make my life a living hell." I added sourly. Oliver just laughed.
"He does that." Oliver smiled at me, trying to lift my spirits.
I just sat there staring at nothing in particular.
"You're not going to eat Julia?" Hermione said, frowning and gesturing to the food.
"I'm not hungry…" I sounded glum to even myself
Fred wrapped an arm around me, "is everything okay, you sound different?"
"I'm fine, school's just not as easy as I thought." Definitely not.
Fred grinned, "do you want to do something fun? Have you had your flying lesson yet?"
"No." I shook my head.
Oliver and Fred grinned, "good." They said in unison.
Fred, Oliver, Angelina and I were walking down to the quidditch pitch. Hermione told us she wanted to save her flying lesson for class and rushed to the library.
I nervously held one of the school's brooms in both of my hands. It felt way too big for me and I found myself imagining myself falling off of it.
I bit my lip. Fred and Oliver were both walking at ease, as they played quidditch and flew regularly, but I was never that good at it. Draco used to make fun of me when he'd soar up into the sky and I'd stay stationary, hovering only three feet on the ground where my feet could touch. Although, after coaxing and persuasion Draco always convinced me to be chaser and he'd be keeper and he'd cheer me on when I actually did fly around and he'd let me score…
We were at the center of the pitch and the three of them put their brooms down, Fred was clutching a quaffle.
Fred and Oliver just looked at me, I followed.
"Alright. Have you flown on a broom before, Jules?" Fred started.
I nodded weakly, looking at my broom nervously again.
"Excellent, this should be easy. We're going to play an impromptu game of quidditch. Angelina will be keeper, Oliver and you will be chasers, and I'll be a blocker."
"A blocker?"
"Well…I would be beater but I didn't want to knock Wood here down too hard."
Oliver rolled his eyes, laughing.
"Alright ready?"
The three of them mounted their brooms and I tried to look as confident as I could. My attempt was in vain.
I couldn't lift on the ground, and when I did I'd just teeter and totter and I slipped off my broom. Of course.
Fred and Angelina instantly took off, I noticed Angelina trying to shove Fred playfully and the two of them were chasing eachother. Oliver was about to take off as well but he noticed I had fell.
He was laughing, "Jules! Are you alright?" He jumped off his broom and helped me up.
"Yeah, yeah. I just, kind of haven't flown in a while." My cheeks were flushing red.
He laughed completely at ease, "alright. Here. Let me help."
He held the broom up for me and took me at the shoulder.
"Alright. Mount it. And when you do just relax and close your eyes."
I did as I was told, both feet solidly on the ground over my broom.
"Good. Okay. Now just, imagine yourself wanting to just…move. To soar. To have everything rushing around you and just enjoying it."
I was closing my eyes completely oblivious. I hadn't realized Oliver was very close behind me with his hands on my waist. It probably looked like something else…
I was just clutching my broom pretending I was flying. Away from Hogwarts, away from this moment, away from this time. I was flying back to bliss and serenity. I was flying back to the days where things didn't matter and it was just me and him and all we did was laugh in our own childish bubble.
I opened my eyes. He was the only person I wanted to see but the last I expected I actually would. I saw Draco retreating from the quidditch pitch as I stood there with Oliver.
