It's one am, I can't believe I'm still up, but I'm writing... be proud. Be very proud.
This next chapter is coming off the top of my head. It's one of the few I didn't write in advance. This is the chapter on Ace's life with Mary after she got taken away from Gabriel, and her Sorting at Hogwarts.
Yes, my girl is definitely crazy...
If you're someone other than 'Kestrel', than I suggest you find a better fic. Trust me, you won't like this.
Mary Lennox's Home
Hogsmeade, Scotland (supposedly)
Age Fifteen
One day after 'rescue'
Curled up on her bed, Ace held a black book in her hand. In the other hand was a quill. Her emancipated form hadn't gained any of it's old form, and in between writing and reading, Ace had been doing vigorous training exercises. However, she was writing in her journal at the moment. Her pale hand paused over the page, and then continued it's writing.
At any rate, I'm back at Mary's. We're going to a wizarding court later today to see if she can become my legal guardian. I suppose it will happen, after the judge sees all my scars and stuff. Mary healed me pretty well, but I still have some scars on my palms from where I was digging into the wood.
She's worried about me. I'm surprised, I must admit. Mary never worries about anyone, except herself. But I've seen all the odd little glances she gives me. Looks to see if I'm still alive, almost. It's amusing and dire at the same time.
I'm so bored.
Snapping the journal closed, Ace ran a hand through her blond hair. She truly was bored. It wasn't like she could go talk to one of her friends. She didn't have any. And hexing people was out of the question- most children were at school.
Still somewhat shaky from the lack of food, Ace dragged herself up and went over to her window seat, peering out the window. And, to her immense surprise, she saw children running around in the tourist part of Hogsmeade. Confused, she quickly went trampling down the stairs.
"Mary?" she called, her voice echoing slightly. She heard a small 'what?' come from the kitchen, so Ace went in that direction.
Indeed, her cousin was in the kitchen, preparing a small meal. Leaning against the door jamb, Ace proceeded to ask her question.
"Why are there children out in Hogsmeade?"
Mary smiled thinly. "There is a school nearby called Hogwarts. Surely you've heard of it? They have trips here every once in a while. I'm surprised they've come this year. The Triwizard Tournament is going on this year." Ace laughed bitterly.
"Don't remind me. Before I got expelled, one of the professors told me I would be a shoe-in if I were only two years old." Mary smiled at her cousin and waved a spoon at her.
"Why don't you go out and make some friends? I don't want you sitting up in your room all day; you're muscles will turn to rubber," her cousin reprimanded gently. Sighing, Ace nodded.
"I suppose. I'll be back in an hour or so."
Turning, Ace grabbed her black cloak and went outside. Sunlight hit her eyes, causing shapes to form in her eyes. Pausing a moment to get used to the light, Ace headed towards the main activity.
The noise hit her first, causing her to nearly run back to Mary's. She hadn't been used to that noise for a while now. Loud, annoying, and happy. It was the sort of noise that Ace detested. Then she saw the children.
They were all wearing black robes, causing Ace to sniff in disgust. Durmstrangs formal robes had been blood red, but Ace never wore them otherwise. There seemed to be an age limit, as Ace couldn't place any of the children younger than twelve or so. And she knew that wizarding schools were opened to eleven-year-olds.
The only suitable difference that she could see was their insignias. Some were green, others were yellow. She even caught sight of some blue and red. Frowning, she headed towards the Three Broomsticks, intent on listening to conversations.
Taking a seat in the corner, Madam Rosmerta handed her a butterbeer. Smiling thinly at the woman, Ace turned her attention to the kids around her.
They all had something odd to talk about. Most were discussing the latest events at the Triwizard Tournament, but several were discussing some of the other students. People named Cedric and Harry. There were a few who were discussing someone named Fleur, and even the name Krum came up. Now, Ace recognized the name Krum. It was Viktor Krum, who was two years older than her. He also played for that Quidditch team. Many of the girls seemed infatuated with him, causing Ace to snort.
Which, unfortunately, brought someone's attention to her. An older student, probably seventeen, looked at her. They were female, and had long brown hair. Their eyes were black, and they had a green insignia on their robes. The student seemed to think for a moment, and then they walked over to her.
"Elaine Grabo, Slytherin 7th year. And you are...?" asked Elaine. Ace met her gaze evenly.
"Ace," was her short reply. Elaine seemed to be expecting more, so she sat down at Ace's table. Ace glared at her, and Elaine glared back.
"Ace what?" she asked. Ace rolled her eyes.
"Just Ace. Do you mind leaving?"
"No. What house are you in? What year?
"I don't attend Hogwarts."
Elaine paused and blinked. "Why don't you attend Hogwarts? Why are you here?"
"I don't want to, and because I live here."
"You live in Hogsmeade? With who?"
"My cousin."
"What's her name?"
"Mary."
"Lennox?"
"Yes."
"Ooo, that old girl is creepy. She watches us, you know, from one of her little towers."
"First of all, she's only twenty five. Second of all, that tower now belongs to me. Be careful Elaine," came the mocking sneer, "I'm watching you."
Elaine laughed, a throaty sort of sound. "How old are you, Ace?"
"Fifteen."
"As I thought. You pose no real threat to me. You are not worth my time. You can watch me all you want, but I'm not scared of you."
"You shouldn't be scared..."
"Good."
"You should be terrified," Ace finished. Elaine stared at her, and started laughing.
"Oh, oh, that's a good one! What are you, five foot three? Five foot four?"
"Five foot two, actually."
"Ha! I'm not going to be scared of a little girl! You're a prat, Ace, a real prat. I could laugh at you all day," cackled Elaine. Standing up, Ace discreetly slipped her wand out of her sleeve. She was practically boiling with rage, and she smiled sweetly.
"No, you couldn't," she cooed. Elaine grinned.
"Want to bet?"
"Certainly. Fifteen Galleons that you couldn't laugh for another minute."
"You're on."
Elaine tossed her Galleons on the table, and then began laughing- just as Ace pulled out her wand and placed it gently on the older girl's forehead.
"You really made my day, Elaine. You've confirmed all my thoughts about the human race in a few well thought out words," she growled. Then, tapping her wand, she muttered 'Stupefy'. Elaine slid to the floor, and Ace quickly activated a timer. The girl would wake up when everyone started to go back to Hogwarts. Turning to go back home, Ace paused.
The Galleons were still on the table...
Ace sighed and pulled out three Galleons on the table. Elaine wasn't all that bad- just amazingly dense.
Turning quickly, Ace quickly made her way through town, finally being able to slip back into the darkness of her room. With that, she picked up her journal and began writing again.
Journal-
Today I met someone new...
Mary Lennox's Home
Hogsmeade, Scotland
Age Sixteen
Two months into a new school year- Halloween
Ace looked bleakly out the window. She was horribly depressed, and desired to watch everyone go through their pointless lives.
Mary had hired a private tutor at the beginning of the new school year, figuring that Ace wouldn't want any social interaction. She had been right, of course. Ace was still very thin, although much taller. She had grown a great deal in just a few spare months, sprouting from a scrawny five foot two to a lanky five foot eleven. And she knew she wasn't done growing yet.
At any rate, Ace had gone through ten tutors in just two months. And not because she was smarter than them. No, because she had a tendency to hex them. Professor Vollrath had been her latest victim- he would go home with a nasty case of boils and no idea where he had been for the past week. The Memory charm could do that to a person...
Mary was beginning to despair, and Ace knew it. Her cousin wasn't rich. Rather, she lived in a middle-class life. And she couldn't afford to get a new tutor every week. Ace felt sorry for her cousin, but not enough to stop her from getting angry.
Opening her window, a breath of cold air hit her in the face. Wrinkling her nose, Ace drew back. She could hear the music from the concert- Midnight Dragon, was it- and it annoyed her. Ace loved music, but not the kind that the band was playing. Plus, it was entirely too loud. Ace was soft-spoken. It seemed odd for her to think such. But she was soft-spoken. Just because she fought a great deal didn't mean she liked noise and such. And she tried not to provoke the fights.
Sighing deeply, Ace reached over and snagged a black blanket from her bed. Wrapping it around her, Ace continued to listen to the concert. But the night air beckoned to her, and Ace finally sighed- this time in exasperation. Tossing the blanket back on the bed, Ace pulled on some of her higher boots, the ones that went up to her knees. Then, silently, she crawled out of the window.
The tower was on the third story, and it was a perilous climb down the slippery shingles. Several times, Ace nearly fell. The wind rushed around her from all sides, causing her to grit her teeth. Her wand was right up her sleeve, ready to be pulled out at any moment. But she made it down safely- and what was more, Mary didn't know.
Ace had grabbed a cloak on the way out, which she was grateful for. The brisk wind continued to hit her. Walking steadily and quietly, she made her way towards the concert, wondering what those guys were about.
She knew she was getting close as soon as the music began to hurt her ears. Ace wasn't exactly hyper-sensitive to sound, but she did have excellent hearing. The loud music caused her to wince, but she kept going.
The crowd wasn't as large as she anticipated, she realized slowly. It was void of all the Hogwarts students who had been at the last concert. Even Ace had been there- albeit, reluctantly. She had stayed away from everyone, a dark face in an exuberant crowd. But it would appear, Ace thought tiredly, that the Hogwarts students had something better on their mind.
It was rapidly approaching midnight as Ace watched the Midnight Dragons perform. They certainly knew how to perform, Ace could give them that. Smiling at cheering girls, kissing hands, kissing MORE than hands... it disgusted her, but it wasn't all that uncommon.
Sensing that someone was behind her, Ace whipped around, her wand already in her hand. Some boy, looking about eighteen, laughed.
"Hey, calm down. I'm not going to hurt you," the boy laughed. Ace didn't lower her guard, just stared suspiciously at the boy.
He had dark brown hair that was a normal guy length. Dark brown eyes... there was nothing that really set him apart from anyone else. Bland looks, really. But his friend behind him...
That boy had blond hair that had a few streaks of black in it. His eyes were an odd shade of gray, and he was skinny. Cute, in a dweebish sort of way.
"I'm Blaine, and this is Stephen," the first boy offered, supposedly Blaine. Stephen smiled at her, shyly. Ace nodded.
"Ace," she replied. It was her normal introduction. Blaine turned to look at Stephen, who nodded.
"Hey, look, we were just wondering why a pretty girl like you was at a fabulous concert all by herself," said Blaine, looking luridly at her. Ace drew her wand out completely.
"Because I want to be alone," she snapped, her voice holding warning in it. Blaine laughed, and leaned close.
"Now, you wouldn't actually want to be alone on such a romantic day, would you?" he whispered suggestively. Ace felt a sudden rush of adrenaline and stabbed her wand at his chest.
"Yes, actually, I would. I suggest you back off, before I give you a taste of what I'm really like," Ace hissed. Blaine laughed and grabbed her hand.
"Hey Stephen, we caught a vixen tonight!" he called. Stephen grinned at his friend.
"Can I have her after you're done, Blaine?"
"Sure!"
Blaine yanked her wand out of her hands and tossed it to the side, laughing. One of his thick, meaty hands held both of her wrists and he leaned forward to kiss her.
Moving purely by instinct, Ace slammed her knee upwards, into his groin. Blaine let out a grunt and fell to the ground, momentarily disabled. Stephen made a move towards her, but Ace quickly moved to the side, snatching her wand from the ground.
"One more move towards me, and you won't be seeing sunrise tomorrow," she snarled. Stephen raised his hands, putting his palms forward.
"Calm down, Ace. I'm just going to go by, see?" he murmured, slowly moving past her. As if he thought she trusted him, as soon as he was out of her line of sight, he ran at her. Ace turned instantly and slammed her hand into his throat. Stephen gurgled and then collapsed to the ground.
"Amateurs. At least choose a female who wants to be with a fool. Obliviate!" Ace scoffed. Glancing at her watch, she was surprised to see it was a few minutes after a midnight. A little action had wasted a good five minutes. Shrugging, Ace began to walk towards her home. There was nothing else for her to see that night.
Someone to her left started to scream, suddenly. Ace turned around, as if expecting Blaine or Stephen to be attacking someone else. But no, they were still on the ground, holding various parts of their body. Confused, Ace looked up.
The glowing sign of the Dark Mark looked back. Blinking in a rapid succession, Ace quickly turned to see who was panicking.
By that time, everyone was panicking. Ace was startled. People reacted that poorly to a sign? Staring at it, she suddenly felt that she had to find the caster, and pay homage. She was destined to join their kind in another year, anyway. There was no reason to put off the inevitable.
While people screamed and pushed past her, Ace began to look around for someone holding a wand. After finding nobody in the crowd, Ace began to run- away from everyone else, towards the town. There had to be someone there who had cast the Dark Mark.
But all of a sudden, someone grabbed her. Angry and startled, Ace looked to see who it was. It was Mary, surprisingly. Her cousin didn't look angry at Ace. Rather, she looked somewhat pleased. Ace realized why.
Lord Voldemort was back.
Mary Lennox's Home
Hogsmeade, Scotland
Age Sixteen
One hour later...
Mary paced in front of the fire, her black robes engulfing her tiny body. Ace sat obediently on the sofa, watching her cousin carefully.
Her cousin had been pleased by the Dark Lord's return. Pleased was a mild way of putting it. As soon as they were in the house, in private, Mary had whooped in joy. A real smile, not one of the cold, calculating ones, had crossed her face. But now she seemed subdued, as though thinking something was wrong. Ace could only read expressions on people's faces, not their minds. She had no idea what was going through Mary's head.
She wished she did, though, as Mary glanced at Ace and frowned. Ace noted the reaction in her head- the look had been worried and yet calculating. Mary was plotting something. What it was, Ace could only guess.
Finally, Mary turned and faced Ace, the fire sending a glow around her, as though she were a dark angel.
"You know what tonight means, Ace."
"I have an idea, yes," she replied, keeping her voice steady and calm. In truth, butterflies were flopping around in her stomach. It was only a little over a year until she would be allowed to join the Dark Lord. It was almost her time.
"It means you are worth a great deal to your family now," amended Mary. Ace rolled her eyes. She already meant much to Mary- she was the heiress of two sides of the family. But Mary just smirked and continued her little speech.
"For years, many of the Lennox females have wanted to join the Dark Lord. And for years, we have been repressed by that foolish Constitution! But no more, Ace. No more. The Dark Lord will not except me, as I am small and know few curses. Avia is old, Leslie is dead, and Amy is older than Avia. Rebecca- well, Rebecca is herself. You are our last hope, Ace. You can make a name of yourself, you can be feared!" Mary crowed, flinging her arms wide. Ace nearly contradicted her. She already was feared. Mary continued, though, forcing Ace back into silence.
"I will go to my friends tomorrow night and discuss the matter with them. You remember one... he was quite interested in you. He said that the Dark Lord would find great use for you, were he still here. But times have changed, Ace. The Dark Lord has returned, and you will become his right-hand! Glory and power will be yours! This is your destiny!" she cried with such passion that even Ace began to feel excited.
"And my revenge?" she asked cautiously. Mary leaned close, her black eyes glittering with a sort of malice Ace had never seen before.
"It will be yours to conduct." Ace nodded dispassionately.
"Excellent."
"You have no doubts? You will join him... willingly?" said Mary. Ace heard the veiled threat, and she nodded.
"Indeed, Mary. You're right... it is my destiny."
"Then we agree that you must go to Hogwarts," Mary announced suddenly. Ace flew to her feet, her eyes wide.
"What? No, we never agreed on that! No, Mary, you simply cannot!" she screamed, outraged. Mary laughed bitterly.
"You've hexed every tutor I could find for you, Ace. You've been expelled from Durmstrang. Hogwarts is the only place left for you."
"What about Beauxbatons?"
"I want you close to my home," answered Mary. Ace laughed just as bitterly as Mary.
"You've used that excuse ever since I was three. Mary... please... anywhere but Hogwarts," she pleaded uselessly. Mary shook her head.
"Every other school that I can think of speaks Russian, Italian, Spanish, or German. You know French, English, and Danish. You can hardly pick up on another language. No, Hogwarts will do you good, Ace. After all, I went there," she reminded Ace. Ace sat down heavily, crossing her arms defiantly.
"I'm not going.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry- Office of Albus Dumbledore
Scotland
Age Sixteen
Day of Sorting
"I can't believe you're making me go," muttered Ace angrily, sitting on one of the chairs in the Headmasters office. Mary sighed and rolled her black eyes.
"Do shut up, Ace. You have to go to school. I contacted Professor Tarenov, and do you know what he said? 'That girl? I have heard horror stories about her! Nein, I refuse!' This is your last chance to have a proper education," scolded Mary. Ace scowled and turned her back to her cousin. Mary could say whatever she wanted, Ace wasn't going to be happy.
Though she did suppose it was better than Durmstrang. Just a few seconds inside the castle had told her that. The atmosphere was much more... comfortable. The students had been making their way to the breakfast hall, and a few had stared at Ace as she walked by with her tiny cousin. Mary had led Ace to Dumbledore's office, where a witch had greeted her. Then she had left, presumably to get Dumbledore.
Ace heard someone coming, and immediately sat up, folding her hands in her lap. The door opened, and in entered Albus Dumbledore.
Mary shot to her feet and went forward to him, smiling.
"Ah, Professor Dumbledore! It is a pleasure to see you again," crooned Mary, holding out a hand. Dumbledore took it, and smiled cheerfully at Mary.
"And it's a pleasure to see you, Mary. Now, who have we here?" he asked, looking at Ace, who had remained sitting. Ace stood and moved next to Mary, who smiled again at the old man.
"My cousin, Simone-"
"Ace."
"Very well, Ace Lennox. Ace, this is Professor Dumbledore, the Headmaster of the school," introduced Mary. Ace nodded gravely at Dumbledore, who smiled at her again.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Lennox."
"I'm sure," replied Ace shortly. Dumbledore smiled knowingly at Mary, and then pulled a tattered old hat from a glass case. Ace stared at it. What was she supposed to do with that? Dumbledore soon answered the question, though.
"This is the Sorting Hat, Miss Lennox. We'll just place it on your head and see where you belong. We have four houses in Hogwarts. Gryffindor, where the brave and courageous stay. Ravenclaw, where the witty and clever house. Hufflepuff, where the loyal and hardworking reside. And finally, Slytherin, where the ambitious and cunning remain. The hat chooses which house you would be best for by looking at your more prominent qualities."
Ace nodded minutely and took the hat from his hands, carefully placing it on her head.
"Ah, a Lennox I see... haven't seen a Lennox since Mary."
Ace blinked, surprised, and then frowned. "That's nice. Hurry up, hat, I'd like to go down and meet my housemates."
"An impatient one, I see. I think we can rule out Hufflepuff. You're hard-working, but not loyal."
"Loyalty is for fools. The only reason people are loyal is because they have a claim in something."
"You believe that?"
"Yes. Hurry up, you foolish hat!"
"We'll rule out Gryffindor as well. You're quite brave, but... I see more ambition in you. More cunning, than anything else."
"Oh, for heavens sakes. They say Gryffindor put brains in you?"
"Quite witty... but you'd do quite well in SLYTHERIN!" the hat called out. Ace briefly thought 'About bloody time...' and then removed the hat from her head, handing it back to Dumbledore. His eyes twinkled merrily, and he nodded at her.
"All right then! Mary, if you could escort your cousin to the Great Hall, she'll be on her way."
Mary nodded gratefully at Dumbledore, and then seized Ace's hand, dragging her out of the office. Ace followed, a bit slowly, but nonetheless, following. Mary dragged her down the hall, and then stopped in front of the Great Hall.
"This is your home now," she snapped. Ace turned her back, angry.
"I don't WANT this to be my home. I want to be at your home," she sneered. Mary shook her head, losing her temper.
"A few last minute instructions, Simone. Stay away from the library, at all costs. I do not want you to be spending all your time reading. Manipulate people, use people, meet people, I don't care, but stay away from the library.
"Second, do not associate with any Gryffindors. I don't care how easy they are to use, I don't want you near such filth.
"Third, if you meet a Muggle-born, you have two choices. Blast them off their feet, or ignore them. Do not talk to them. Hate them, call them Mudbloods, do anything.
"Finally, be good, Ace. I don't want any owls home about you," her cousin finished. Her voice echoed eerily in the hall, and Ace turned around.
"Stay away from me, Mary! If I want to go to the library, then I will! And I wouldn't associate with Gryffindors or Mudbloods anyway! You know better than that! Good-bye, Mary, I'll see you at the end of the year!" Ace shouted. Turning quickly, she slammed open the doors. A quick silence followed, and then Ace slowly entered the Great Hall, her heels clicking on the cobblestone.
It was going to be a long year...