Chapter 1

14th June 1991,

Desford Manor, Oxford, United Kingdom - 08;16 am

Sora yawned as she stared at the parchment envelope that she received directly from her family owl not too long ago that morning. She knew what this letter was. She'd seen two of them already. She flipped over the letter to the sealed side and ran her finger over the wax seal, The Hogwarts School seal to be exact. She gently peeled it open and pulled out the letter, curious of what it had to say since she never saw her brothers' actual letters, just the envelope. Unfolding it, the 11 year old began to read the let out to herself.

Dear Miss Desford,

We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed list with all the necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1st of September. We await your owl no later than the 31st of July.

Yours Sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

Soran went back to the envelope and found more parchment, this must be the list. She began reading it thoroughly, each title of these books seemed to trigger some interest. She was so intrigued by the things she needed that she didn't hear the pitter patter of bare feet on marble approach her. It was only when she felt a hand ruffle her (black/ blonde) bed head that she snapped back into reality. She jumped in her seat at the dining table and stared wide eyed at her affectionate attacker.

"Morning sis, what've you got there?" Cassius, her eldest brother asked as he pulled a seat out beside her and leaned over to see the object she was holding. When he saw it, his expression faltered and he leaned back. "Ah, that's right, you're 11. I forgot it was around now you'd be getting one," he said as a butler entered with a breakfast trolley. Soran noticed his sullen look, and her eyes moved back to the list.

"How much do you want to go, Cass?" She asked, frowning down at the paper.

"Very much but you know what Mum and Dad have said. They'd rather we were homeschooled in muggle work,"

"You mean what Mum has said. Dad just agrees with her," the young girl rolled her eyes. "I'm fed up with learning muggle school stuff when we have so much more going for us. We're just wasting our other half away," she slumped back with a pout on her face. Cassius stayed quiet, she had a point and he too wanted to explore his wizarding side.

"We agree with you Soran, muggle school is so bland," a voice that belonged to Finnian stated monotonously from behind her. The girl leaned her head back to see her twin brothers upside down.

"You want to go too?"

"Of course we do. We need something more challenging," Emrys sighed out as the two took their seats and picked out their breakfast. Hearing that got the girl thinking, she desperately wanted to go but her mother would be against the idea for whatever reason but maybe if she got to her father first? She might as well take the chance and so she stood up and made her way up the large wooden staircase. She ran across the corridor and loitered in front of her parents bedroom, mustering up the courage to knock on one of the doors but before she could, the door her fist was hovering over opened to reveal the man she wanted to see, dressed in his suit and briefcase in hand. Upon seeing her there, he took a step back in surprise.

"Oh Soran, good morning,"

"Good morning, father, mother," the (green/grey) eyed girl peered round her father to see her mother in bed reading a book. She smiled but the blonde woman gave her a sharp glare, making her daughter's face drop. Arsenius motioned for the little girl to move back for him to exit the room and she did, watching him closely, waiting for his attention to be on her. The black haired man looked down at her.

"What is it, sweetheart?" he said as he began walking down the wide corridor toward the stairs.

"I got my letter," the man sighed, hearing her statement.

"We've talked about this, Soran,"

"You've talked about it with Cass, Finn and Emrys. Not with me," she corrected.

"You can't go, "

"Why? Give me one good reason why?" the girl argued, she could feel herself becoming irate with this man she called her father. There was no reason, they couldn't even give a reason to their parents as to why they wouldn't let their grandchildren go to Hogwarts or learn the basics of magic.

"I don't have time for this Soran, I need to leave for work," Arsenius tried his best to steer away from the subject but it would be proved fruitless with this stubborn girl around as she followed her father into the dining room where all four of her brothers were now. They had stopped eating to see the commotion. Their eyes followed the two to the fireplace but before her father stepped in, Soran grabbed his arm and he swung back round with an unimpressed look.

"You do have time! We would like to go to Hogwarts, father! What are we supposed to do when we're adults and want to start a family? Are you seriously both going to ruin that for us because let's face it, you are! It's not like we can't afford to go," Soran motioned toward the house to show that it was obvious that that wasn't the reason. "It is unfair. It's unfair that you're deterring us from learning about ourselves and what we can do. You can't just take it away from us because you have that power because you're our parents! You and Mum went, why can't we?!"

"Life is unfair, Soran. I'm sorry," with that she watched him take a handful of Floo Powder before stepping into the fireplace again until the girl spoke again.

"Please, dad. We don't ask much from you, but if there is one thing, it would be this," the man stopped and turned to look at his daughter with an unreadable expression. Instead of responding, he spun back round and muttered; "Ministry of Magic," before green flames surrounded him and when they were gone, so had he. The little girl was seething as she glared at the brick wall.

"It was a good try, sis. Better than we've ever done," Cass praised, from where he sat but when there was a gush of wind his eyes widened along with all the other children in the other room. Soran's eyes widened in realisation when her hair flew out in front of her, briefly obscuring her vision. She quickly turned round to look at her mother but instead, she was met with a jarring slap to the face which knocked her to the ground. The sound echoed throughout the room. Before the little girl could touch the marble floor however, a hand wrapped around her left wrist and held her up. This position wasn't ideal, as her mother had to grip her wrist hard to make sure she didn't fall but it wasn't out of care because all Soran could see was her furious eyes and resentful sneer.

"Don't you ever speak to your father like that, do you hear me!" the blonde vampire screamed, making her daughter flinch in fear. "And we can stop you from going and we will, so get that ridiculous idea out of your head now!" with that she was gone, and Soran tumbled to the floor. A terrified look was set on her face as she gawked at the stairs in a trance-like state. She'd never done that before, only yelled. Her brother's rushed to her side once they had come out of their shocked state too with the butler making his way over too.

"Soran! Are you okay?!" Inigo, the youngest of the siblings, scrambled onto the floor beside her, placing a hand on her shoulder but he received no response.

"Your arm, Miss! Do you need anything?" the butler asked. Her arm? What about her arm? Soran's head stiffly gazed down at her wrist where a dark bruise of a hand print was beginning to appear. It was ugly and unattractive. She then went to get up robotically, stumbling a bit as her brother's and butler watched her worriedly. "Miss,"

"No, no. I'll be fine. I'm going up to my room. I-I need to think about some things," she said as she slowly made her way up the stairs once again. When passing her parents bedroom, she kept to the wall opposite, afraid her mother might pop out again and hit her and once she got to her room she slammed it shut and locked it, not that it would do any good but put the 11 year old at ease.

Soran didn't eat lunch that day, she was called by the maid to come and eat but the girl politely declined. She wasn't in the mood to eat, she had lost her appetite for the day but unfortunately she wouldn't be able to skip dinner so easily. She heard the Grandfather Chime down the hall, letting her know it was six in the evening and dinnertime. Her eyes glanced at the door from where she sat on her four poster bed, her hands clasped in her lap. They snapped back, deciding she didn't want to go down but when a few minutes passed and a maid knocked, she felt like she should, more so because she feared what her mother might do. She slowly opened the white door with the metal doorknob and made her way back down to the Dining Room where she could hear chatter and laughter. She wasn;t surprised to see it was her mother and father, while her brothers sat awkwardly upon seeing their mother's took note of the twins not being very subtle with their glares toward her but the woman was too busy being with her father.

When they saw movement, the two adults turned to see their daughter in the doorway. Her father smiled however her mother grimaced. The (blonde/ravenette)'s face held no expression as she made eye contact with her mother. Arsenius didn't seem to be picking up the tension in the air and continued to speak to Soran.

"Sweetheart, why didn't you come down? You know when dinner time is," it was when she didn't respond and kept her eyes on his wife that he sensed something was wrong. "You didn't do school today. You can't just not do it when you don't get your own way," the caught the girl's attention and she looked at her father with a bemused look.

"It wasn't because I didn't get my own way. It was because of this," the 11 year old lifted her left arm to show her bruised wrist and her father's eyes suddenly widened in shock before he stood up and rushed down the room to take a closer look at the wound.

"What? Who did this?" he asked and the girl looked at him as if to say, 'isn't it obvious?' before motioning to her scowling mother. The raven haired man turned to look at his wife with an unimpressed look.

"Circe, darling. Come talk with me a moment," the small girl glared at her father as the two walked out. She couldn't believe it. Her mother had just harmed her and all she got was a mollycoddling 'Circe'. She moved her head to her brothers to see her eldest shake their heads in disbelief while Inigo just looked at them in confusion. Soran took the opportunity to take a seat and eat something since she was starving. As she pretended to eat, she tried to focus on their whispering but unfortunately she wasn't having much luck in finding out what their little private conversation was.

After eating half her dinner, her mother and father finally returned. Her mother came to her side first and put on a sickly sweet smile as she bent down a bit. The way she acted made Soran feel inferior and belittled.

"I'm sorry, sweetie for what I did. Can you forgive me?" Gosh. This was pitiful

'No,' is what the girl wanted to say but to keep the peace she decided to go along with it.

"Of course, mother. I'm sorry too for how I spoke to dad," Soran responded back in the fake tone and Circe quickly caught on but she didn't say anything apart from sneer as she leaned in to give her daughter a forehead kiss to complete the act. She then went back to her seat.

"I'd also like to mention that your mother and I have decided that you will go to Hogwarts. It is indeed unfair not to let you go and so the four of you will be starting in September," Arsenius said with a joyful smile, making his children look at him skeptfully. That's strange. So they just changed their minds? Soran guessed it had something more to do with her mum not wanting her there, she suddenly had this feeling that that was the case. Not that she cared.

"Really?" she asked, not quite believing him.

"Of course, sweetheart," Soran stared at him before breaking into a fake smile.

"Thank you so much, father, mother. We really appreciate it, from the bottom of our hearts," her older brothers' nodded in agreement, muttering their 'thank you's'.

"What about me?" Inigo asked, a pout on his face.

"You need to wait another two years, my boy," Arsenius chuckled.

"Two years?!" the 9 year old scoffed to himself before scooping up a forkful of greens and shoving them into his mouth, making the girl's mood lighten slightly, a small smile appearing on her lips.

01 September 1991,

Kings Cross Station

It was finally the day and the four siblings were extremely excited. They had all the things they needed and it took a lot of will power for the twins and Soran to not start reading their books. For their pets, the twins got themselves a cat each, Scottish Folds to be exact and named them Vega and Altair while Cassius got himself a Little Owl which he called Gylfie. Now Soran found a little creature that was neither cat, toad or owl like the letter mentioned but the purchase was unplanned. When she entered the pet shop in Diagon Alley, she was busy admiring all the animals but there was one that stood out the most. It was a baby Daubenton's bat and as soon as she laid her (green/grey) eyes on it, she was in love. The tiny creature seemed drawn to her also as it began to squeak softly from its little blanket. She didn't waste a second to purchase her and named her Pan. She helped her grow strong over the months until she no longer needed to be swaddled and could fly around easily. Pan had grown so attached to the girl that she trusted her to be able to sit on top of her head or shoulder and sleep there.

The four became even more thrilled when they were told it was time to board the train, a beautiful black and red steam engine. They bid their father and younger brother a goodbye, their mother decided she didn't want to join them. It was quite disheartening but if the Desford girl was honest, she wasn't surprised. After the altercation a few months ago, it seemed Circe had become a lot nastier toward her children, completely ignoring them or yelling at them for the smallest of things. Soran was just glad she wouldn't have to see her for a while. She could do something more interesting with her life and most importantly, she could make friends.

The Desford Siblings entered a carriage, loving the cosiness of it and the comfy, springy seats. The youngest squealed in excitement, making her brothers smile.

"We did it, we're finally here!" she cheered as the train began to set off.

"This will be a long journey, you know. 9 hours I heard someone say," Cass said, getting himself comfy.

"Who cares, it'll be worth it," Finnian sighed, petting Vega, his Scottish Fold who purred loudly in his lap. An elderly voice appeared in the doorway, startling the children.

"Anything from the trolley, dears," the four frowned, peering at the trolley she had been wheeling along.

"What do you have?" hearing this the old woman tilted her head in confusion.

"Oh well, we've got Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans, Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, Pumpkin Pasties, Cauldron Cakes," the children looked at eachother and cluelessly picked out what they wanted. Soran chose to go for a Chocolate Frog and a Cauldron Cake and she scanned over their colourful packaging. She was even more surprised when the Chocolate Frog was alive and began hopping about the carriage, she stared wide eyed at it, just like her brothers, however she made an attempt to grab it since the cats were getting restless with it. She was finally successful after a while and began to eat it rather messily. Cass, Finn and Emrys grimaced at her, unimpressed by what they witnessed and she could only smile innocently. She sat back down and noticed there was still something in the box, she pulled it out to reveal a pentagonal card. There was a man, moving in it with a long white beard and circular glasses and below him was a name.

Albus Dumbledore.

"This is the Head Teacher, right?" She questioned Finnian who was beside her. He nodded.

"Yes, that's him," in response, Soran made a noise of acknowledgement before leaning back in place and pulling out a book.

Soran found herself in a place she didn't recognise. It was a smallish room with two beds, parallel to each other. A fireplace right in between the two beds, most likely to keep the room warm during winters. The majority of the room was an emerald green colour which she found odd and instead of walls beside the beds there were bookshelves. Before, she could do anything else, a voice called out to her. It was distant at first and she turned to find a wooden arched door, that was where it was coming from. Then she was shaken violently. Soran yelped and jolted forward, startling Pan too.

"Soran wake up, jeez. You're such a heavy sleeper. Come on, we'll be there soon. Some girl told us we should change into our robes," Cass tutted with a smirk before leaving the carriage.

"Huh? I fell asleep?" she asked rhetorically. "What a weird dream," it was then she noticed how dark it was, peering out the window, she could make out the train station and she panicked, she wasn't ready! She quickly scooped up her robes and sprinted out the carriage dodging other students as best she could in the narrow corridor with Pan flitting after her. She muttered a sorry to anyone she barged past roughly and soon came to a small bathroom, closing it shut when the small bat got herself in too. The girl was done in a minimum of four minutes and she felt the train beginning to slow down. She shoved the door open to see some kids getting themselves ready to get off the train which meant she needed to weave her way around them. As she stepped down the corridor keeping to one side, smiling apologetically at some potential classmates, she ended up bumping into someone but she was quick to grab their hand before they could fall to the ground. She found herself looking at a bespectacled brown haired boy with green eyes and a rather unique looking scar on his forehead. He was definitely the same age as her which meant he was in her year.

"Oh my goodness. I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" the (blonde/black) haired girl fussed as she pulled him up to stand properly.

"Yeah, I'm good. Thanks by the way," he stared unblinking at the girl, making her eyes shift anxiously.

"Okay. Well, I need to get back to my carriage and get my stuff!" she said passing a red haired boy who frowned at the girl in confusion. She was the first person to not be surprised or excited to see the Harry Potter, maybe it was purely because she was in a hurry.

Soran exited the train and scanned the platforms for her brothers which proved difficult with all the students around.

"First years and Desford's, this way please! Come on now!" a deep voice bellowed through the commotion and the young Vampire's head snapped in the direction. It was there she saw her brothers, along with small children her age and a very large man. He was practically a giant. Upon seeing their sister standing awkwardly on the platform, they ushered her over by waving an arm frantically toward them. She scurried over with the giant man's eyes on her. "Right, is that everyone? Good, now follow me. My name is Hagrid and I'm Keeper of Keys and Grounds," he introduced proudly.

The half-giant took them to a small dock with boats and told the children to board them. Four at a time. The siblings looked at each other with knowing smiles. How convenient for them! Soran gazed up at the school with wide eyes as they slowly floated toward the looming Castle. It was absolutely, breathtakingly magnificent! She felt her heart soar again. She decided to take a look at her soon to be classmates and squinted at them through the darkness and dim light of the lanterns, only just making out their faces. She made eye contact with one boy who had shining white blonde hair and she didn't hesitate to let her face break out into a smile. It took him a moment before he smiled back and then looked away, seeming to be rather shy.

"Right you lot, head up that way and you'll meet Professor McGonagall," Hagrid instructed them and they did as he said, trudging up the mainy staircases to wherever they were supposed to meet this Professor. The siblings stayed near the front as much as they could. They soon found her and Sorannoticed she was a rather stern looking woman in her green velvet robe and black pointed hat.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," she greeted in a strong Scottish accent, looking at each and every pupil she could from her spot. "Now, in a few moments, you will pass through these doors and join your classmates but before you can take your seats, you will be sorted into your houses. They are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Now, while you're here, your house will be like your family, your triumphs will earn you points. Any rule breaking and you'll lose points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded a house cup-"

"Trevor!" A voice called out, startling most of the students and McGonagall. A boy quickly rushed forward and scooped up a toad before peering up at the teacher who had a rather puzzled look on her face. A couple students giggled and a small smirk played on Soran's lips. The boy apologised before moving back to his spot.

"The sorting ceremony will begin momentarily, but first, the four Desford children, I must speak with you quickly before I let them know you are ready," Soran straightened upon hearing her last name which caught the old witches eye. "Come along now then," she ushered walking to the side. Soran followed with Cass, Emrys and Finnian in tow. "Now, the Headteacher and I are well aware of your Vampiric background and we need to let the school know who you are. At some point they're bound to find out but we find it in their best interest that they know. We still wanted your consent first though," the siblings looked at each other and Cassius nodded.

"We are very okay with that Professor, thank you for considering our feelings," he smiled gratefully, making the Professor return it.

"Wonderful, now all of you wait a moment," she said as she went to the double doors and slipped through them as the siblings moved back to the group of students.

"It's true then, what they're saying on the train," the boy from on the boats spoke up. Maybe he wasn't shy? "Harry Potter has come to Hogwarts," there was a sudden flurry of students muttering and Soran looked at them in confusion. "This is Crabbe and Goyle," he introduced his two friends before stepping toward the boy that Soran assumed was Harry, the same boy she accidentally knocked over in the train. "And I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy,"

What a pretentious name.

The redhead who stood beside Harry snickered at the name which received him a sharp glare from the Malfoy boy.

"Think my name's funny, do you? No need to ask your name, red hair and a hand me down robe, you must be a Weasley," the 11 year old boy jeered with a disgusted tone, earning him a sneer from the boy and an unimpressed look from the girl beside him. "You'll soon find out that some wizarding families are better than others, Potter. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort, I can help you there," the boy lifted his hand for a handshake. This made Soran scoff.

Oh, he's one of those kinds of people. Makes sense with the name then.

The blonde boy had now turned his attention to her but this time there was no smile. He just glared at her nastily. "Have you got something you want to say too, you pointy eared freak," Soran quickly dropped into a sneer while the comment that set off a fire in the boys eyes as they stepped forward with a dark look but (Y/n) held up a hand, telling them to calm down and think before making a stupid move. Draco noticed the sudden proactiveness and ominous aura making him lean back. The girl went to speak but Harry beat her to it, breaking up the intense atmosphere.

"I think I can tell the wrong sort myself, thanks," making Draco stare at him in disbelief and then hatred before the boy was tapped on the shoulder none other than by Professor McGonagall who had come back from the room. He moved back to his friends and let her speak.

"We're ready for you now, follow me," she spoke softly with a smile and led the way toward The Great Hall, they went straight ahead through one set of double doors and then there was a much larger set that they were approaching on the left. The Great Hall was grand! Four long tables were set out evenly and each one was crowded with students with different coloured badges. Looking at the red haired boy, (Y/n) decided to ask him a question. She caught up with him, nudging his shoulder as she eyed up the people who stared back at her. He frowned at her wondering what she wanted.

"Your friend. Harry Potter. What is so special about him?" she whispered, making his frown deepen.

"What? Have you been living under a rock your whole life?" she stared at him dead in the eye for a moment while biting her bottom lip.

"Yeah," she nodded once, showing him how serious she was and yet again he was taken aback by her response. The group then came to a halt once they reached the front of the hall where a stool stood with a tatty looking hat.

"Can you wait along here, please," Professor McGonagall motioned in front of the steps that she stood atop. The teachers table was slightly raised to overlook the school almost like a stage. Behind her was an oddly familiar white bearded. "Now, before we begin, Professor Dumbledore would like to say a few words," with that the old Wizard stood and began his announcement.

"I have a few start of term notices I wish to announce. The First Years, please note that the Dark Forest is strictly forbidden for all students, also our caretaker, Mr Filch, has asked me to remind you that the third floor corridor on the right hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a most painful death. Thank you," hearing that made the young Vampire frown at the stone floor in deep concern before looking over to McGonagall again as she unravelled a piece of parchment.

"When I call your name, you will come forth, I shall place the Sorting Hat on your head and you will be sorted into your houses. Hermione Granger," she called out. Hermione Granger was a small bushy brown haired girl and she took a breath to calm her nerves before stepping up and taking a seat.

"Mental that one, I'm telling ya," the red haired boy whispered to Harry.

As soon as the hat touched Hermione's head, it came alive and spoke.

"Ah yes.. Hmmm, right. Okay, Gryffindor!" It called out and the Gryffindor table erupted in cheer, welcoming their first new housemate of the year. This went on with the rest of the children but Cassius, Finnian, Emrys and Soran were yet to be called. The red haired boy who's name was Ronald Weasley and Harry Potter both ended up in Gryffindor too while the Draco Malfoy lad went to Slytherin. Finally, it was just the four siblings standing there awkwardly with everyone's attention. Dumbledore then stood up again.

"Children, I would like you to meet four of five of the Desford siblings. We would like to inform you that these young people are a lot different from you, than you may think. Their mother is a Vampire Witch and their father is a Wizard, and therefore that means they share a bit of each of their parents' DNA," the tables began muttering amongst themselves, making Soran's eyes shift nervously but Dumbledore quietened them. "Now, do you not fret, we are telling you this so that you know they will not harm you in any way, so don't be afraid to make friends," with that he sat down and gave McGonagall the all clear to continue.

"Cassius Desford," the black haired boy jogged up the steps and sat down as the hat landed on his head, it said.

"Ah, Cassius Desford, first son of Circe Streiber and Arsenius Desford. Interesting one your mother was… I think you should be put into… Gryffindor!" the table cheered, much to Cass' surprise. He certainly wasn't expecting that reaction and he hopped down the steps with a grin on his face. Next was the twins and both got into Ravenclaw, like that wasn't obvious already. Again, they were welcome with open arms. Soran took a deep breath as she stepped up to the stool, the hat began talking once it was placed on her head.

"Ah, little Soran Desford, the only daughter of Circe Streiber and Arsenius Desford. You're a tricky one to place… hmmm, you suit all houses, but the one you suit the most will have to be… Slytherin!" The girl flinched when she heard their cheers and her eyes moved to Cass who only nodded and gave her a thumbs up. She made her way down toward the Slytherin table where she was given pats on the back and hand shakes. She was about to take her seat when she heard her name being called.

"Desford! Sit here, " Draco said as he nudged a kid to move up. She was hesitant but approached him. He gave her a smirk as she took her seat but her attention was elsewhere.

"Let the feast begin," Dumbledore said and moved his hand to the side to reveal platefuls of delicious food along each table and seeing it only made (Y/n) realise how hungry she was. She didn't hesitate to dig in but this seemed to gain some confused looks.

"You eat human food?" Draco asked, making the girl pause her actions to give a bemused look.

"Yeah?" she said in a questioning tone. "Why would I not?"

"Well you're a Vampire. Don't you… eat people?" Soran blinked at him. Was he being serious?

"No, we drink their blood and even then our victims aren't random. People donate blood for us,"

"Oh, I didn't know that,"

"Well there's a lot more I'll probably have to teach you about then, if you want to that is,"

"As long as you don't drink my blood," the girl gave him a look and he laughed. "I'm only kidding," Soran raised a brow, he was an odd one. He seemed rude at first but she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. She cast her gaze toward her brothers to see how they were doing and she was pleased to see that they were as happy as they had ever been. Cass seemed to be making friends already and the twins were quiet however the people around them included them, asking questions about them every so often.

She smiled to herself, this was their place and they were finally happy.