Hey! Finally Sass sees some action! Malfoy (no, she's not Mary-Sue, I
just had to put that in. Malfoy gets to her eventually). fighting. ooh.
ok, sorry.
For inf, bolds are in *.* and don't forget that memories are . and if anyone knows how to DELETE chapters, as opposed to just replacing them, PLEASE tell me! Thanks.
Sasina (Sass for short) Chapter 3- Friends and Enemies
After a moment, Mr. Ollivander cleared his throat and said, "Well, looks as though that's the wand for you. Strange, quite strange. Most don't get it on the first try- but you'll be wanting the wand now." He walked over to Sass and took the wand, wrapping it in brown paper before he put it back in its box. They paid seven galleons for the wand, and left.
Sass shivered as they headed back to the Leaky Cauldron, although it was still quite warm out. They hadn't planned on coming back this early, but everyone was a little freaked out after Sass' wand had made its display. So, after getting Sass fitted for robes, they decided to have an early dinner at the Leaky Cauldron.
After a wonderful dinner, Sass was happy as she fell into her bed, but sleep eluded her. What would this school be like? What if she was terrible at everything? She also pondered the way her wand had shown it was hers. Surely not everyone's wand did the same thing. Why had hers chosen a misty, silver shadow? She thought she would never get to sleep, but at some point, she must have blinked, because oblivion found her.
* * * * *
The next morning, she put aside her worries of the night before. The day was bright and sunny, and they managed to get going early enough that a little of the morning's freshness was left as they exited the Leaky Cauldron. She wanted to preserve every bit of this memory as well as she could. But, unfortunately, the rest of that week was something of a whirl to Sass. That day flew by like a squall, and before she knew it, they were back at the Leaky Cauldron once again, this time sporting Sass' robes, books, potions supplies, and other equipment. That night she had no trouble sleeping. She was too tired.
The next two days also passed quickly. Sass found that all she could think about was Hogwarts. So although she did have fun, Sass was glad when she found herself staring at the ceiling above her bed once again on August 31st, wondering what the dawn would bring.
* * * * *
"Wake up, sleepyheads!" Sass shook Emara and Michelle into wakefulness the next morning. "We've got to be at King's Cross in two hours!"
Michelle just rolled away from her, but Emara groaned and sat up. "Well, I suppose you should go wake up the others. Don't worry," she continued as Sass raised an eyebrow, "we'll get up on our own."
Sass shrugged and complied. As she went down to breakfast, she noticed a large group of people all eating together. One of them, a skinny, green- eyed boy, seemed familiar, but she couldn't place his face. The rest of the family seemed to be redheads. However, Sass and the scouts left quite awhile before they were finished, and she put it in the back of her mind in the bustle of finding their way through London. When they finally got to King's Cross, Sass pulled her suitcase out of the trunk.
"You guys sure you want to come in with me? I know you've got a tour at eleven-fifteen."
"It's no problem," said Michelle, "I want to make sure you get on the train okay."
Sass shrugged, and let Emara take the lead as they maneuvered their way through the train station. She walked slowly, letting the others go in front of her. All of her worries from the night before came rushing back. Lost in her thoughts, she almost tripped over Serena as she stopped abruptly. "Well, I guess we're here." She heard Emara's voice from the front. "Sass? What do we do next?"
She wiggled between Serena and Raye to get up to Emara. "Just walk on through. That's what the letter said." She put her hand against the barrier. "Well, lets see." She leaned against the barrier, and found herself falling through.
Sass landed in a heap with her suitcase on top of her. She groaned, and opened her eyes. A plump, red-haired woman was standing over her, looking concerned.
"Are you all right?" she said. "Here, let me help you." She extended a hand, but Sass had already started getting up.
"I think I'm fine," Sass replied, feeling like an idiot. "I'm sorry I worried you."
The woman smiled at her. "Oh, it's not a problem. I just wish my own ones were as polite." She looked over Sass' shoulder. "Oh, are you her mother? A lovely child you have."
Sass turned and saw that Michelle had come through the barrier behind her and was grinning.
"No, I'm her guardian. Thank you so much for your concern. I'm Michelle Lantuan." She extended her hand to the woman, who shook it warmly.
"Molly Weasley. Pleased to meet you. First year at Hogwarts?" she said to Sass.
Sass nodded affirmatively. Mrs. Weasley smiled. "I've two graduates and five there presently. You're sure to love it there. Everyone does."
"I'm sure she will." Michelle put a hand on Sass' shoulder. "Maybe we'll see each other sometime again."
"Yes, that would be lovely." The woman turned to look towards the train- red! The train was red? It was long, and had the words Hogwarts Express written on the side. But it was bright red! Sass had seen a great many trains in her life, and none of them were red, or even anything resembling the bright scarlet of this one. Sass tore her eyes away from it, telling herself it was probably a magic thing. When she looked back to Michelle, the woman was gone, and in her place were all of the others. Sass checked her watch.
"I'd better find a spot on the train. It leaves in five minutes." She stood awkwardly for a moment, looking at Emara and Michelle. "Well, bye then. I'll see you in June, I guess." She looked others and said, "It's been wonderful meeting you all. I guess I'll see you again, too."
Sass started to turn away from them, until she heard Emara's voice. "Hey wait a minute!" She turned back and both Emara and Michelle stepped forward and hugged her. "You didn't think you were getting out of here without a hug, did you?" Sass shook her head, and, with surprise, felt tears coming to her eyes. She remembered the last time someone had hugged her like this. /Mr. Snapel- Sam-/ she brought herself back to the present and smiled, stepping back. "Thanks." She widened her gaze to the others, who were mostly looking a little embarrassed. "Thank all of you for everything."
Then she turned, and stepped onto the train.
* * * * *
Inside was a bustle of the shouting voices students reuniting with old friends and finding places to sit. Sass stopped, feeling all of a sudden very alone. /But that's nothing new, she told herself, as a matter of fact, it's the story of my life up until two months ago. I can deal with this./ She stood up straighter, and allowed her expressionless "game face" to slip on. Even now, it was easier than just letting her emotions through.
She started down the aisle, checking the compartments as she passed them. When she was about halfway down, she felt a jerk as the train started. But after that, the movement was actually very smooth. She could hardly feel it as she continued on. The aisle had mostly cleared now, but there was still one girl roaming. As they passed each other, she smiled.
"Hey. Are you a first year?"
Sass nodded.
"I'm Ginny. Second year. Nice to meet you. What's your name?"
"Sass."
Ginny tilted her head. "Are you from a muggle family?"
Sass shrugged. "Dunno, but I grew up not knowing about magic, if that's what you mean."
"Close enough. You want to put your stuff with my friends and me? I mean, once you get Sorted and everything you'll have friends in your own year, but for now you can hang with us."
"Really?" Sass said.
"Of course. Come on. I was just looking for them when I ran into you. My brother made me leave him and his friends." She rolled her eyes. "Let's go!" She smiled again and turned down the hall.
Sass followed her gladly. After all, where else was she going to sit?
* * * * *
After she put away her bags, though, Sass left Ginny's compartment to roam. She didn't know how anyone could talk so much and still have a jaw. The relative silence of the aisle was a welcome relief. She decided to try and do a few of her martial arts routines while she had the time. Ever since the other Scouts had come, there just hadn't been time to do them as often as she liked. She centered and began the routine, starting with the slow, stretching movements that would help her muscles warm up and relax.
As she got into the routine, it wasn't just her muscles that relaxed. This was something she was /good/ at, and it was so peaceful. Strange that the movements, designed as war training, would feel peaceful, but there it was. Sass pulled off her coat as she started to sweat. She was just in her T- shirt and sweatpants, going through the punches, blocks, and kicks. This always made her feel like she was the only one in the world, just her, the movements, and getting them right.
Unfortunately, that wasn't true. Sass had started the cool-down part of the sequence, about an hour later. A boy with slick blonde hair exited one of the compartments, flanked by two hulks, which were obviously his henchmen. Sass had seen enough bullies to know this one. But she stayed polite, just in case the two had some tricks up their sleeves.
She stopped moving, knowing she would regret /that/ later. "Hello," she said evenly.
The blond tilted his head back in disgust as he reached her. He was about six inches taller that her, and, not for the first time, she wished she'd gotten more food as a kid. "You're one of /them,/ aren't you?" he said down his nose.
"One of what?" Sass had no trouble keeping her face and voice smooth, but inside she darkened with anger.
He rolled his eyes at his cronies. "A muggle," he said in a voice of utter loathing.
"I'll never know, because I was put in an orphanage when I was a month old. Honestly, some people." She knew where she was going now.
The boy actually looked worried for a second. This was going to be easier that she'd thought. But he got his mask of loathing back on before he spoke. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Have you ever heard of the saying, 'if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all?'" Now she matched his look exactly.
He laughed. Was there a hint of nerves in it? "Do you mean I should abide by it?"
"No," she didn't say it, but the 'fool' was there. "I say something different. If you can't say anything /smart/ then keep your mouth shut." She paused. He didn't know what to say to that. "Don't know what I mean? That's okay; I can explain it. Your insult just now. It was lame. Heritage is never a good insult, unless you know the person will be jibed by it. And I think you are the /only/ one who cares /what/ my parents were. So you should have just stuck to hello, and moved on." Sass paused for effect. "Get it now?"
She could see he was dumbfounded, and it made no sense to stay until he recovered his wits. She turned on her heel and walked down the aisle, where she noticed Ginny staring out of the compartment along with the rest of her friends. She was motioned in, where they surrounded her, chattering excitedly.
"Wow! That was /amazing/!"
"The look on his face!"
"You smashed him!"
"Finally, he's finally getting some of his own back!"
"I wish I could do that!"
"How did you even think of what to say?"
When the clamor finally died down, Sass found she was something of a hero, no matter that all of these girls were a year older than her. She smiled shyly, not used to the attention. They certainly seemed nice, but she had firsthand experience with the way people could turn on you at a moment's notice. And there was no way they were going to let her back out into the corridor now, even though she was sweaty from her workout. When the lunch cart came around, she found herself bustled out into the aisle along with the rest. She only then realized how hungry she was. But all of her money was buried in her suitcase, and she didn't feel like digging it out. She was just about to resign herself to going hungry when the other girls noticed she hadn't bought anything.
"Aren't you going to have any lunch?" one of them asked, a brunette named Clara.
Sass shrugged uncomfortably. "I'm not really hungry," she lied.
"No way!" she said, laughing. "Everyone's hungry on the Express! Hey, tell you what. I'll spot you for lunch. No, no," she said over Sass' feeble protests, "I insist. It's worth it just having seen the look on Malfoy's face!"
"Oh, so that's his name?" Sass gave up trying to be a martyr. There was no reason /not/ to accept, after all.
"Yeah," the girl said as she purchased more stuff from the cart. "His family's devilishly wealthy. 'S Dad's one of the school governors. And he makes sure there's not a soul in the school who doesn't know it."
Sass nodded in understanding, then let their chatter flow around her as she contemplated her actions. /Did he really deserve that?/ some part of her asked. /They all say he's a jerk, but what if he's actually a good person, and this started with them? /
/But he started it,/ she told herself. /He was condescending, rude, and he insulted me, although it's not a very good insult, like I told him. And they said he brags about his family at school, which implies very genuine jerkiness, especially since they all already know about it./
/And then there's that./ A new part of her, the criticizing bit, jumped forward. /You just made an enemy of him, you idiot. No one here knows you, no one trusts you, and most likely none of them will defend you against him. Do you really think you can afford to have an enemy as powerful as that?/
/Yes. That I can do, if nothing else. I lived most of my life with nothing and no one to protect me. I can protect myself. And I can always run away. There's nothing keeping me here, after all. But I won't need to. You have to admit that I can cope with pretty much anything./
That finally did it. The voice quieted down and she was able to eat her lunch.
* * * * *
As the afternoon went on, the sky outside grew darker and darker, adding to Sass' sense of being closed in. So in a lull in the others' constant conversation, she quietly slipped once again out into the corridor. She looked around, surprised to see that she was alone. Sass looked at her watch. It was about four-thirty, which meant that they probably wouldn't be on the train for too much longer. She remembered one of the girls saying something about the feast they were going to have at dinner. Presumably that meant they would be at Hogwarts by then.
Sasina gently stretched her muscles, feeling the ache where she hadn't gotten to loosen up earlier. She allowed her mind to drift, putting her in a state that was almost a trance. /Let it flow./
* * * * *
What awoke her was the gradual stopping of the train. Sass stood up and looked around. It was raining really hard. She wondered when that had started. She yawned and headed for Ginny's compartment for her trunk. /I hope the food at the school is good/, she thought. /I'm /hungry/, and I think I'd eat pig slops. God knows I've eaten worse./
The train stopped with a jolt, which she immediately compensated for. She continued to walk down the corridor as heads popped out on either side of her. Suddenly all the lights went out. /Somehow I don't think this is supposed to be happening,/ she thought. She immediately dropped down into a defensive crouch, all of her senses hyper-aware. She heard footsteps shuffle in the corridor, then the sound of voices as they found the people they were looking for. /That sounds like Ginny. Maybe she went to find her brother./ Then her attention snapped back to the front of the train as the doors opened with a cold blast of air.
In the dim light from outside, she saw black, cloaked, figures entering the train. They moved quickly down the train, splitting up so that one entered each compartment. Their efficiency scared her. So did the gasps and moans that came from some of the compartments they entered. Some emerged quickly, but others stayed for an achingly long time. Then they were approaching her. One, two, three, then four came to face her. She tensed, ready to fight them however she could, but then they stepped closer, and she started to fall.
The lash hit her back, and the pain nearly caused her to cry out, but she bit her lip. Noise would make for more lashes; that she knew. Milord Paul's voice filled her ears, screaming at her. And then the pain began, the complete, mind-searing pain.
She was worthless, absolutely worthless. Why had the stranger in the competition withdrawn? She wasn't worth it. /But it was worth it/, she thought suddenly. /They adopted me/. *what?*
All of a sudden she was able to think, no longer trapped in the memories, though they grew steadily worse- beatings, starvation, being forced to practice even when she was delirious with pain. /There has to be a way to break this/, she thought. /But what?/ Then the scene in Ollivander's came back to her. But she started to lose it even as she thought of it. /No- I have to beat this, or I'm dead meat. what was it? I felt /happy/, that's it! What were the words, what. /were/. they? Expo- expecto-/ She felt the pain tugging at her, pulling, pulling. Then, just before she lost it, the words came. She grabbed her wand from her pocket without a second thought and said them- "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" She felt, almost through a haze, that same thing slide out of her, and a burst of silver mist shot out of her wand. The things, /there are more of them now,/ stepped back, obviously surprised. She continued to concentrate on the way she had felt at the shop, the wonder and shock, the fizzy feeling in her stomach, the /happiness/. But it wasn't enough- some of them had left, now, and the lights were back on, but the rest were staring straight at her, and she got the feeling they were angry... and she couldn't keep this up. she felt the memories reaching for her again, and prepared herself for it. /No-/
Mua ha ha, my first good cliffie, but the next chapter's already up, so I guess it doesn't matter. pooh. REVIEW!!!!!!
For inf, bolds are in *.* and don't forget that memories are . and if anyone knows how to DELETE chapters, as opposed to just replacing them, PLEASE tell me! Thanks.
Sasina (Sass for short) Chapter 3- Friends and Enemies
After a moment, Mr. Ollivander cleared his throat and said, "Well, looks as though that's the wand for you. Strange, quite strange. Most don't get it on the first try- but you'll be wanting the wand now." He walked over to Sass and took the wand, wrapping it in brown paper before he put it back in its box. They paid seven galleons for the wand, and left.
Sass shivered as they headed back to the Leaky Cauldron, although it was still quite warm out. They hadn't planned on coming back this early, but everyone was a little freaked out after Sass' wand had made its display. So, after getting Sass fitted for robes, they decided to have an early dinner at the Leaky Cauldron.
After a wonderful dinner, Sass was happy as she fell into her bed, but sleep eluded her. What would this school be like? What if she was terrible at everything? She also pondered the way her wand had shown it was hers. Surely not everyone's wand did the same thing. Why had hers chosen a misty, silver shadow? She thought she would never get to sleep, but at some point, she must have blinked, because oblivion found her.
* * * * *
The next morning, she put aside her worries of the night before. The day was bright and sunny, and they managed to get going early enough that a little of the morning's freshness was left as they exited the Leaky Cauldron. She wanted to preserve every bit of this memory as well as she could. But, unfortunately, the rest of that week was something of a whirl to Sass. That day flew by like a squall, and before she knew it, they were back at the Leaky Cauldron once again, this time sporting Sass' robes, books, potions supplies, and other equipment. That night she had no trouble sleeping. She was too tired.
The next two days also passed quickly. Sass found that all she could think about was Hogwarts. So although she did have fun, Sass was glad when she found herself staring at the ceiling above her bed once again on August 31st, wondering what the dawn would bring.
* * * * *
"Wake up, sleepyheads!" Sass shook Emara and Michelle into wakefulness the next morning. "We've got to be at King's Cross in two hours!"
Michelle just rolled away from her, but Emara groaned and sat up. "Well, I suppose you should go wake up the others. Don't worry," she continued as Sass raised an eyebrow, "we'll get up on our own."
Sass shrugged and complied. As she went down to breakfast, she noticed a large group of people all eating together. One of them, a skinny, green- eyed boy, seemed familiar, but she couldn't place his face. The rest of the family seemed to be redheads. However, Sass and the scouts left quite awhile before they were finished, and she put it in the back of her mind in the bustle of finding their way through London. When they finally got to King's Cross, Sass pulled her suitcase out of the trunk.
"You guys sure you want to come in with me? I know you've got a tour at eleven-fifteen."
"It's no problem," said Michelle, "I want to make sure you get on the train okay."
Sass shrugged, and let Emara take the lead as they maneuvered their way through the train station. She walked slowly, letting the others go in front of her. All of her worries from the night before came rushing back. Lost in her thoughts, she almost tripped over Serena as she stopped abruptly. "Well, I guess we're here." She heard Emara's voice from the front. "Sass? What do we do next?"
She wiggled between Serena and Raye to get up to Emara. "Just walk on through. That's what the letter said." She put her hand against the barrier. "Well, lets see." She leaned against the barrier, and found herself falling through.
Sass landed in a heap with her suitcase on top of her. She groaned, and opened her eyes. A plump, red-haired woman was standing over her, looking concerned.
"Are you all right?" she said. "Here, let me help you." She extended a hand, but Sass had already started getting up.
"I think I'm fine," Sass replied, feeling like an idiot. "I'm sorry I worried you."
The woman smiled at her. "Oh, it's not a problem. I just wish my own ones were as polite." She looked over Sass' shoulder. "Oh, are you her mother? A lovely child you have."
Sass turned and saw that Michelle had come through the barrier behind her and was grinning.
"No, I'm her guardian. Thank you so much for your concern. I'm Michelle Lantuan." She extended her hand to the woman, who shook it warmly.
"Molly Weasley. Pleased to meet you. First year at Hogwarts?" she said to Sass.
Sass nodded affirmatively. Mrs. Weasley smiled. "I've two graduates and five there presently. You're sure to love it there. Everyone does."
"I'm sure she will." Michelle put a hand on Sass' shoulder. "Maybe we'll see each other sometime again."
"Yes, that would be lovely." The woman turned to look towards the train- red! The train was red? It was long, and had the words Hogwarts Express written on the side. But it was bright red! Sass had seen a great many trains in her life, and none of them were red, or even anything resembling the bright scarlet of this one. Sass tore her eyes away from it, telling herself it was probably a magic thing. When she looked back to Michelle, the woman was gone, and in her place were all of the others. Sass checked her watch.
"I'd better find a spot on the train. It leaves in five minutes." She stood awkwardly for a moment, looking at Emara and Michelle. "Well, bye then. I'll see you in June, I guess." She looked others and said, "It's been wonderful meeting you all. I guess I'll see you again, too."
Sass started to turn away from them, until she heard Emara's voice. "Hey wait a minute!" She turned back and both Emara and Michelle stepped forward and hugged her. "You didn't think you were getting out of here without a hug, did you?" Sass shook her head, and, with surprise, felt tears coming to her eyes. She remembered the last time someone had hugged her like this. /Mr. Snapel- Sam-/ she brought herself back to the present and smiled, stepping back. "Thanks." She widened her gaze to the others, who were mostly looking a little embarrassed. "Thank all of you for everything."
Then she turned, and stepped onto the train.
* * * * *
Inside was a bustle of the shouting voices students reuniting with old friends and finding places to sit. Sass stopped, feeling all of a sudden very alone. /But that's nothing new, she told herself, as a matter of fact, it's the story of my life up until two months ago. I can deal with this./ She stood up straighter, and allowed her expressionless "game face" to slip on. Even now, it was easier than just letting her emotions through.
She started down the aisle, checking the compartments as she passed them. When she was about halfway down, she felt a jerk as the train started. But after that, the movement was actually very smooth. She could hardly feel it as she continued on. The aisle had mostly cleared now, but there was still one girl roaming. As they passed each other, she smiled.
"Hey. Are you a first year?"
Sass nodded.
"I'm Ginny. Second year. Nice to meet you. What's your name?"
"Sass."
Ginny tilted her head. "Are you from a muggle family?"
Sass shrugged. "Dunno, but I grew up not knowing about magic, if that's what you mean."
"Close enough. You want to put your stuff with my friends and me? I mean, once you get Sorted and everything you'll have friends in your own year, but for now you can hang with us."
"Really?" Sass said.
"Of course. Come on. I was just looking for them when I ran into you. My brother made me leave him and his friends." She rolled her eyes. "Let's go!" She smiled again and turned down the hall.
Sass followed her gladly. After all, where else was she going to sit?
* * * * *
After she put away her bags, though, Sass left Ginny's compartment to roam. She didn't know how anyone could talk so much and still have a jaw. The relative silence of the aisle was a welcome relief. She decided to try and do a few of her martial arts routines while she had the time. Ever since the other Scouts had come, there just hadn't been time to do them as often as she liked. She centered and began the routine, starting with the slow, stretching movements that would help her muscles warm up and relax.
As she got into the routine, it wasn't just her muscles that relaxed. This was something she was /good/ at, and it was so peaceful. Strange that the movements, designed as war training, would feel peaceful, but there it was. Sass pulled off her coat as she started to sweat. She was just in her T- shirt and sweatpants, going through the punches, blocks, and kicks. This always made her feel like she was the only one in the world, just her, the movements, and getting them right.
Unfortunately, that wasn't true. Sass had started the cool-down part of the sequence, about an hour later. A boy with slick blonde hair exited one of the compartments, flanked by two hulks, which were obviously his henchmen. Sass had seen enough bullies to know this one. But she stayed polite, just in case the two had some tricks up their sleeves.
She stopped moving, knowing she would regret /that/ later. "Hello," she said evenly.
The blond tilted his head back in disgust as he reached her. He was about six inches taller that her, and, not for the first time, she wished she'd gotten more food as a kid. "You're one of /them,/ aren't you?" he said down his nose.
"One of what?" Sass had no trouble keeping her face and voice smooth, but inside she darkened with anger.
He rolled his eyes at his cronies. "A muggle," he said in a voice of utter loathing.
"I'll never know, because I was put in an orphanage when I was a month old. Honestly, some people." She knew where she was going now.
The boy actually looked worried for a second. This was going to be easier that she'd thought. But he got his mask of loathing back on before he spoke. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Have you ever heard of the saying, 'if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all?'" Now she matched his look exactly.
He laughed. Was there a hint of nerves in it? "Do you mean I should abide by it?"
"No," she didn't say it, but the 'fool' was there. "I say something different. If you can't say anything /smart/ then keep your mouth shut." She paused. He didn't know what to say to that. "Don't know what I mean? That's okay; I can explain it. Your insult just now. It was lame. Heritage is never a good insult, unless you know the person will be jibed by it. And I think you are the /only/ one who cares /what/ my parents were. So you should have just stuck to hello, and moved on." Sass paused for effect. "Get it now?"
She could see he was dumbfounded, and it made no sense to stay until he recovered his wits. She turned on her heel and walked down the aisle, where she noticed Ginny staring out of the compartment along with the rest of her friends. She was motioned in, where they surrounded her, chattering excitedly.
"Wow! That was /amazing/!"
"The look on his face!"
"You smashed him!"
"Finally, he's finally getting some of his own back!"
"I wish I could do that!"
"How did you even think of what to say?"
When the clamor finally died down, Sass found she was something of a hero, no matter that all of these girls were a year older than her. She smiled shyly, not used to the attention. They certainly seemed nice, but she had firsthand experience with the way people could turn on you at a moment's notice. And there was no way they were going to let her back out into the corridor now, even though she was sweaty from her workout. When the lunch cart came around, she found herself bustled out into the aisle along with the rest. She only then realized how hungry she was. But all of her money was buried in her suitcase, and she didn't feel like digging it out. She was just about to resign herself to going hungry when the other girls noticed she hadn't bought anything.
"Aren't you going to have any lunch?" one of them asked, a brunette named Clara.
Sass shrugged uncomfortably. "I'm not really hungry," she lied.
"No way!" she said, laughing. "Everyone's hungry on the Express! Hey, tell you what. I'll spot you for lunch. No, no," she said over Sass' feeble protests, "I insist. It's worth it just having seen the look on Malfoy's face!"
"Oh, so that's his name?" Sass gave up trying to be a martyr. There was no reason /not/ to accept, after all.
"Yeah," the girl said as she purchased more stuff from the cart. "His family's devilishly wealthy. 'S Dad's one of the school governors. And he makes sure there's not a soul in the school who doesn't know it."
Sass nodded in understanding, then let their chatter flow around her as she contemplated her actions. /Did he really deserve that?/ some part of her asked. /They all say he's a jerk, but what if he's actually a good person, and this started with them? /
/But he started it,/ she told herself. /He was condescending, rude, and he insulted me, although it's not a very good insult, like I told him. And they said he brags about his family at school, which implies very genuine jerkiness, especially since they all already know about it./
/And then there's that./ A new part of her, the criticizing bit, jumped forward. /You just made an enemy of him, you idiot. No one here knows you, no one trusts you, and most likely none of them will defend you against him. Do you really think you can afford to have an enemy as powerful as that?/
/Yes. That I can do, if nothing else. I lived most of my life with nothing and no one to protect me. I can protect myself. And I can always run away. There's nothing keeping me here, after all. But I won't need to. You have to admit that I can cope with pretty much anything./
That finally did it. The voice quieted down and she was able to eat her lunch.
* * * * *
As the afternoon went on, the sky outside grew darker and darker, adding to Sass' sense of being closed in. So in a lull in the others' constant conversation, she quietly slipped once again out into the corridor. She looked around, surprised to see that she was alone. Sass looked at her watch. It was about four-thirty, which meant that they probably wouldn't be on the train for too much longer. She remembered one of the girls saying something about the feast they were going to have at dinner. Presumably that meant they would be at Hogwarts by then.
Sasina gently stretched her muscles, feeling the ache where she hadn't gotten to loosen up earlier. She allowed her mind to drift, putting her in a state that was almost a trance. /Let it flow./
* * * * *
What awoke her was the gradual stopping of the train. Sass stood up and looked around. It was raining really hard. She wondered when that had started. She yawned and headed for Ginny's compartment for her trunk. /I hope the food at the school is good/, she thought. /I'm /hungry/, and I think I'd eat pig slops. God knows I've eaten worse./
The train stopped with a jolt, which she immediately compensated for. She continued to walk down the corridor as heads popped out on either side of her. Suddenly all the lights went out. /Somehow I don't think this is supposed to be happening,/ she thought. She immediately dropped down into a defensive crouch, all of her senses hyper-aware. She heard footsteps shuffle in the corridor, then the sound of voices as they found the people they were looking for. /That sounds like Ginny. Maybe she went to find her brother./ Then her attention snapped back to the front of the train as the doors opened with a cold blast of air.
In the dim light from outside, she saw black, cloaked, figures entering the train. They moved quickly down the train, splitting up so that one entered each compartment. Their efficiency scared her. So did the gasps and moans that came from some of the compartments they entered. Some emerged quickly, but others stayed for an achingly long time. Then they were approaching her. One, two, three, then four came to face her. She tensed, ready to fight them however she could, but then they stepped closer, and she started to fall.
The lash hit her back, and the pain nearly caused her to cry out, but she bit her lip. Noise would make for more lashes; that she knew. Milord Paul's voice filled her ears, screaming at her. And then the pain began, the complete, mind-searing pain.
She was worthless, absolutely worthless. Why had the stranger in the competition withdrawn? She wasn't worth it. /But it was worth it/, she thought suddenly. /They adopted me/. *what?*
All of a sudden she was able to think, no longer trapped in the memories, though they grew steadily worse- beatings, starvation, being forced to practice even when she was delirious with pain. /There has to be a way to break this/, she thought. /But what?/ Then the scene in Ollivander's came back to her. But she started to lose it even as she thought of it. /No- I have to beat this, or I'm dead meat. what was it? I felt /happy/, that's it! What were the words, what. /were/. they? Expo- expecto-/ She felt the pain tugging at her, pulling, pulling. Then, just before she lost it, the words came. She grabbed her wand from her pocket without a second thought and said them- "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" She felt, almost through a haze, that same thing slide out of her, and a burst of silver mist shot out of her wand. The things, /there are more of them now,/ stepped back, obviously surprised. She continued to concentrate on the way she had felt at the shop, the wonder and shock, the fizzy feeling in her stomach, the /happiness/. But it wasn't enough- some of them had left, now, and the lights were back on, but the rest were staring straight at her, and she got the feeling they were angry... and she couldn't keep this up. she felt the memories reaching for her again, and prepared herself for it. /No-/
Mua ha ha, my first good cliffie, but the next chapter's already up, so I guess it doesn't matter. pooh. REVIEW!!!!!!