Child of Night
Author's Notes: *sings* Shinjite… la la la la la la… *grin* Ah, Ara's writing again. *cackles evilly* Ooooh, note: lack of sleep is bad for Ara. Another note: All the stuffish we write is based on what we choose to happen after book four, as we are not psychic and able to figure out what Ms. Rowling will write.
Disclaimer: One Ara to rule them all… One Ara to find them… One Ara to bring them all… AND A SPOON OF DOOM MUWAHAHAHAHA *cough* We own nothing that other people own. *nods*
Child of Night
And the Sword of Souls
By Ara Moon and Jesse's Peanut
Butter Princess
-Chapter Three-
Wait For the Dawn
"Are we there yet?"
"No."
"Are we there yet?"
"No, Ace, no we are not there yet."
"…"
"What?"
"So, are we there yet?"
Arianna yawned as a voice from outside the compartment screamed and stomped off. She could hear the smooth, gentle voice of the other male yell, "Hey, wait up! You never answered me!" before Remus opened their compartment door. She looked up at him tiredly, while Grace shot up.
"Arianna, why is your dad's friend on the train?!" she asked, and Arianna blinked a few times before raising an eyebrow. "Didn't you know? Remus is the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts starting this year. Well, restarting. He taught a few years back, but--" she coughed, "—due to certain circumstances, he had to quit."
Remus smiled at Grace. The blonde sat down. "Why doesn't anyone tell me these things!?" she asked, and Arianna shrugged, looking for her robes. Grace started to do the same.
"I dunno… Maybe because you're--" The train suddenly jerked to a stop, and Grace's robes flew into her best friend's face. Arianna sputtered and glared. Grace laughed.
"You deserve it," she said, grabbing the robes and pulling them on. Arianna raised an eyebrow at her friend, staring at her. Grace looked herself up and down.
"What?" she questioned, searching for some little speck of Chocolate Frog still hopping or some other imperfection in her outfit.
"Grace, my dear, you are wearing a yellow tanktop and jeans under black robes. What are you thinking?" Grace rolled her eyes, scowling.
"Hush, Goth Girl," she retorted, and Arianna grinned a little at this response. She got it a lot. True, in the Muggle world, baggy black pants and a tight black and ruby shirt might give that idea, but in the Wizarding world, those colors were favored.
The hazel-eyed brunette broke into song. "So I'm a little left of center, So I'm a little out of tune, Some say I'm paranormal, So I just bend their spoon…" It was Grace's turn to raise her eyebrow. Remus sighed, knowing how long his daughter would go on for, picked up his bag, and hurried out of the train.
The duo filed out of the Express, Arianna still singing. Grace sighed. "Okay, you can stop now," she grumbled. Several people were staring at her. Arianna just grinned and slung an arm around Grace's shoulders. Her hazel eyes clearly said, Not a chance on your life.
A large, burly man with a thick beard was standing in front of the group. "Firs' years this way," he called cheerily, and the two followed him through the group of chattering students. Arianna was still belting out lyrics like there was no tomorrow as they slipped into the boats.
Around the third or fourth time, Grace pretty much had the lyrics down. She joined in, and eventually, the two others in the boat, a blonde male and a blood-red headed female, joined in as well.
"Who wants to be ordinary, In a crazy, mixed-up world, I don't care what they're sayin', As long as I'm your girl…" The passengers of the other boats were staring at them, but they didn't seem to care.
The quartet quieted down when they caught their first glimpse of the castle, though. Arianna had never seen anything like it; her family was considerably poor, so they hadn't gone on too many trips, let alone to sprawling castles like this. Grace looked absolutely amazed. "DUDE…" she breathed, astonished, and Arianna could only nod, gulping.
Both females looked at each other, brown eyes and hazel eyes locking. A grin spread across their faces simultaneously. "This is so gonna kick ass!" they squealed together.
Meanwhile, the other two in the boat had stopped paddling, still staring in amazement. Arianna started poking the blonde behind her, while Grace waved a hand in front of the redhead's face. "Yoo-hoooo," Grace called. Arianna started poking the guy in the nose.
"Dude…" she said, and Grace looked at her. "What?" she asked, still waving a hand in front of the now-attentive redhead, whose emerald eyes were glaring at it. "This guy has a cool nose!" Arianna explained, poking it wildly, an almost-rabid look on her face. Grace grinned at her friend.
"Please stop poking my nose, Hunn," the blonde said, smiling, and Arianna complied. "Sure, Babes," she replied, patting him on the head. He didn't seem fazed in the least.
All the other boats were a distance ahead of them. The redhead sighed. "My first day at Hogwarts, and I'm late getting to the school. Why meeee?" Arianna looked at Grace. "You think that, if we paddle harder, we'll catch up with them?" Grace shrugged.
As they put their paddles in the water, Arianna said, "Err, Red, you have your paddle on the wrong side…" Said redhead turned around, glaring. "I would put it the other way, but I only have one frelling hand!" She pulled back her sleeve and, truth be told, she only had one hand. Arianna shuddered.
"Sorry, sorry…" Arianna pushed her paddle down in an arc, attempting to move the boat forward. She hit something solid and gulped. A large tentacle shot out of the water.
"Eee!" Three of the four kids shot to one side of the boat in fear. Now, one thing you should know: tiny boats are made to only balance the tiniest of weight differences. Three eleven-year-olds are anything but tiny.
Arianna sputtered as she broke the surface. "Oh, THIS is fun…" she muttered as Grace surfaced beside her. She was pulling up the redhead with the help of the male blonde when suddenly, she shrieked. "Why is there a bloody tentacle around my waist?!" she yelled, and Arianna blinked.
"I have nooooooooo clue," she said, as another appendage wrapped around her. It gently placed her back in the boat, along with her other boatmates. "Cool…" the blonde male said, "This must be the giant squid that kid at the orphanage was talking about!"
The brunette grabbed one tentacle, turned it sucker-side-up, and wrote in the palm of its hand with her finger, Thanks.
Ink shot to the surface of the water, forming words. No problem ;-), it read, and Arianna blinked. Then the tentacles went to the front of the boat and started dragging them towards their new classmates.
As soon as they hit shore after going under the cliff, the burly man said, "So, fell off yer boat, didja?" Arianna glared at him, shaking her soaked sleeves. Grace pulled a piece of seaweed from her ear, nodding.
"Yes, we did, sir. The squid pulled us out." The man grinned at her.
"Call me Hagrid," he said, and the group nodded. Hagrid turned away, calling to the rest of the students, "Follow me!" Together the first years trekked up the stairs. Hagrid knocked three times when they reached the door.
There were several gasps and, "Oooooooh, preeeeeeeeeetty,"s when the doors opened. Some people, liked Arianna, stopped to stare around the room. Others, like Grace, had different responses.
"Wheeeee!" Grace squealed, spinning around in circles, arms outstretched. Beside her, Ignazio was bragging about how "the Vinceguerra manor is three times as large, and classier, too." The blonde spun closer and faster. The water-soaked weighted sleeves smacked right into the raven-haired male's face, causing him to fall over, sputtering.
Grace spun back towards Arianna. "Good show, my dear, good show," the hazel-eyed girl said with a heavy false British accent, applauding. Grace bowed, grinning.
The students fell silent as a stern, tight-faced woman gracefully stalked into the woman. Her movements reminded Arianna of a cat, and a cat you should never cross, at that. Unless, of course, you were looking to be severely scratched.
"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," Hagrid said to the woman as she eyed Arianna and Grace's robes disdainfully. "Thank you, Hagrid," she said offhandedly before gesturing to all the soggy children to come to her. They obliged.
"Honestly, can't you first year children stay dry just one year?" she said, and Arianna was unsure if it was to them or herself.
The ebony-haired woman pulled out her wand and muttered a spell. They soon found themselves dry as they were earlier. Arianna felt something heavy in the back of her robe, and calmly lifted it. Out fell a small creature that seemed to consist of a sac and a spout.
Simultaneously, Arianna and Hagrid said, "A Lobalug!" The brunette blinked and looked up at the tall man. "You're interested in magical creatures?" Hagrid grinned down at her.
"'Aye. And I presume you are, too?" Arianna nodded. Hagrid beamed. "Then you can look forward to your third year," he said, before waving at Professor McGonagall and marching from the building. Grace blinked, looking at Arianna.
"A Loba-who?" she asked, and her friend rolled her eyes.
"A Lobalug. You know, the sea creature with the poison sack and the spout?" Immediately, Grace stepped away. "Merfolk use Lobalugs as weapons sometimes." Her blonde friend made a long "Ooooh" sound. Then she blinked.
"Dude, the wizarding world has Merpeople? I thought that was just mythology…" Arianna raised an eyebrow at her. Then she patted her on the head.
"You have much to learn, my dear."
Professor McGonagall made a loud noise in her throat. They immediately silenced. "Thank you. Now follow me." She led them through the entrance hall to a small chamber beside what Arianna deduced to be the Great Hall, where her father would be waiting for the feast and sorting.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall began in an almost tired tone. It sounded as if she had done this so many times she had it down by heart.
"The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room." A shock of fear shot through her as she, like many other students, instinctively moved closer to her best friend. What if she and Grace ended up in opposite houses, and she ended up with a jerk like Ignazio? She shuddered at the thought.
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin." Arianna watched as several Muggle-borns seemed to be taking notes mentally. Ignazio was trying to look as bored and arrogant as possible. He was examining his nails, leaning against the wall. Arianna grinned, muttering a few choice words Sirius taught her, waved her wand, and Ignazio slipped to the floor with a "THUNK."
Professor McGonagall glared as Ignazio's two minions grabbed him by the arms, trying to pull him up. Unfortunately for everyone's least favorite greaseball, they had their knees on his stomach to lever themselves. "MY ARMS! YOU ARE STRETCHING MY ARMS!" he shrieked, and the lackeys let go. Ignazio clanked against the floor before sliding around like a wet bar of soap in a shower.
All the first years howled with laughter as the two numb-brained boys chased around their screaming leader. Professor McGonagall looked horrifed. "Wingardium Leviosa!" she yelled over the laughter, and Ignazio floated above the students. Her hand hidden behind Grace, Arianna quickly reversed the spell, and pocketed her wand.
After thoroughly checking Ignazio, she let him back down, looking around suspiciously. "Where was I? Ah, yes, well, you will be sorted into one of these four houses, whichever one fits you the best. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will become a credit to whichever house becomes yours.
"The Sorting will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all attempt to smarten yourselves as much as you can while you wait. I shall return when we are ready for you. Please wait quietly." And in a billow of cloak, she turned and left the chamber.
Grace gulped. "How do they decide which house we're in?" Arianna grinned, a secret flashing in her eyes. In a quiet, high, chillingly freaky voice, she said, "I'll never tell…" Her friend blinked.
"So what is it?" Arianna shrugged. "Nothing big, don't worry. You'll see." Suddenly, something hard fell down and hit Arianna on the head. She bent over.
"Raining umbrellas? In this weather?" she asked as more showered down around her. People around her shrieked and screamed, ducking for cover in the small, empty room. An evil cackle resounded in the room as a short, dark-eyed, cross-legged poltergeist flew into the room.
Arianna, the only one still standing, gave a half-grin. "Err, hi?" she said, waving gently. The floating man grinned, cackling.
"Oooh, Ickle Firsties, all gathered in one place before the sorting? What fun!" And so he dumped all the umbrellas on her. She caught one, twirled it around her wrist, and used it to deflect the rest.
"Peeves," Professor McGonagall scolded, "go away. Torment them later. You'll have seven years to." Catching sight of the other ghosts and grinning evilly, Peeves soared off. Professor McGonagall sighed.
"Form a line," she said, "and follow me." They complied, Arianna falling in behind Grace and in front of a pale boy. Professor McGonagall led them into the Great Hall, lining them up in front of the teachers' table. Grace was staring at the ceiling, and Arianna jabbed her in the ribs with her finger.
"It's not the real sky, Grasser, dear," she said, and Grace looked at her. "It's an enchantment."
Grace blinked. "Grasser? Where'd that one come from?"
Arianna reached over and grabbed a green bean from the blonde's hair. "This," she replied, facing forward again. Grace shrugged and popped it in her mouth.
Professor McGonagall silent brought out a four-legged stool and a ragged hat, placing it in front of the first years. Everyone in the hall quieted as they stared at it, either in excitement, anxiety, or boredom. Arianna did, too, until it twitched. A rip in the brim opened wide like a mouth, and burst into song:
"A thousand years ago or more
When I was newly sewn,
There lived four wizards of renown,
Whose names are
still well known:
Bold Gryffindor, from wild moor,
Fair Ravenclaw, from glen,
Sweet Hufflepuff, from valley broad,
Shrewd Slytherin, from fen,
They shared a
wish, a hope, a dream,
They hatched a
daring plan
To educate young
sorcerers
Thus Hogwarts School began.
Now each of
these four founders
Formed their own house, for each
Did value
different virtues
In the ones
they had to teach.
By Gryffindor, the bravest were
Prized far beyond the rest;
For Ravenclaw, the cleverest
Would always be
the best;
For Hufflepuff, hard workers were
Most worthy of
admission;
And
power-hungry Slytherin
Loved those of
great ambition.
While still
alive they did divide
Their favorites from the throng,
Yet how to pick
the worthy ones
When they were
dead and gone?
'Twas Gryffindor who found the way,
He whipped me
off his head
The founders put some brains in me
So I could
choose instead!
Now slip me
snug about your ears,
I've never yet
been wrong,
I'll have a
look inside your mind
And tell where you belong!"
Everyone in the hall burst into applause. The hat bowed to each table, and then became rather still again. Professor McGonagall stepped up, holding a large roll of parchment.
"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted." Looking at the list, she called out, "Abrosia, Lynn," and so the Sorting began.
Grace was watching Lynn as she put the hat on. It made several thinking sounds. "Hmm… Good mind, a want to learn… Ooh, a very hard worker, and loyal, too… Hufflepuff!"
"So all we have to do is put on the hat, let it look through our mind, and bam! our house is chosen?" Grace asked, and Arianna nodded, offhandedly.
"Bijan, Astra," had taken most of her attention. She was a tall, slim girl, and was quite attractive. But what caught her attention was the familiar color of her hair, like mineral gold, with the star-silver streaks on the front parts that framed her face to her chin. The rest of her hair was cut short, but it glowed against her pale flesh. Arianna noticed that the girl had two small fangs in front, much like she had.
Unique hazel eyes locked with even more peculiar deep gold eyes. Transfixed, Arianna noted that they looked like powdered gold, ground from the purest of the metal. From under the hat, Astra inspected Arianna coolly, powdered gold freezing as they came across the mark on her forehead.
"Plentiful bravery, and a thirst for justice… Let's go with GRYFFINDOR!" Arianna applauded with the rest, but she was still entranced by Astra.
A smile slowly crept into the other girl's calm face. She shot a grin at Arianna, indiscernible to anyone but them. As she turned to head to the Gryffindor table, the brunette caught sight of a black crescent mark on the back of her neck, barely protruding from her robes.
The hall soon quieted, and "Bijan, Zero" stepped up. She heard a gasp, but she couldn't tell if it was Grace or her.
Have you ever seen a guy or a girl, and you or your friend comment that he/she is "so totally hot?" Well, Zero was not just hot. If you could only use three words to describe him, they would have been, "heavenly, breathtakingly radiant." And even that might not have been enough to describe him.
Zero's skin was equally as pale as his sister's, but it was more opaque and enticing. He was tall and lean, with long limbs. Hair as silver as a reflected moon fell gently over thin shoulders, framing powdered silver eyes. Strands of gold, like his sister's, contrasted beautifully with the rest of his sensuous hair, scattered evenly through his hair.
To sum it up, Zero Bijan was a work of art, appearing as fragile as porcelain and as beautiful as night.
Arianna noticed that several students looked like they might faint, and that one Hufflepuff girl already had. Beside her, Grace was staring, mouth wide open. Arianna's reaction was very similar.
Moving smoothly across the hall, almost as if he were water and the room was a lake, he seated himself of the stool and placed the hat on his head. It seemed that it was having a difficult time making a decision. After two minutes (in which many girls, Arianna included, had recovered), the Hat called out, almost weakly, "Slytherin."
The whole hall erupted in applause, even Gryffindor, who apparently had forgotten their rivalry with the other house in the midst of his beauty.
Professor McGonagall cleared her throat. "Black, Arianna." The whole hall fell into a silence, before breaking into loud whisperings.
"Black? As in, the murderer, Sirius Black?"
"How did he have a child while he was locked up in Azkaban? I mean, he only got out a few years ago…"
"Why would Dumbledore allow the daughter of a convict in his school?"
"I bet she's just like him! A murderer! We'd better watch our backs around her…"
Grace looked at Arianna questioningly, and Arianna gulped. "I'll explain later," she said. Her blonde friend grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze of reassurance. "Good luck!"
Arianna tried to ignore all the eyes on her as she walked through the Great Hall. I should have known that my last name would cause problems… Honestly, I should have had them write "Arianna Lupin" on the adoption papers…
The brunette stole a glance at the Head Table. A greasy-haired man was glaring at her suspiciously. She looked down the table more. An old, white-haired man was smiling slightly, powder blue eyes twinkling. Two places down, Remus was grinning ear-to-ear, looking excited. This, surprisingly, reassured Arianna, rather than making her even more nervous. As she sat down on the stool, she looked towards the window.
A shaggy black dog was leaning in.
Arianna grinned.
Pulling the Sorting Hat on, Arianna waited.
A small voice was in her head almost immediately. "Exquisite mind, great loyalty--" mentally, Arianna groaned. Not Hufflepuff, please, not Hufflepuff…
The voice chuckled. "Don't worry, you aren't quite hardworking and honest enough for Hufflepuff." The brunette huffed, but said nothing.
"Ambition to grow to full potential--" The voice in her head, which had been lying dormant for quite a while, piped in, Slytherin sounds good to me!
Arianna glared mentally, something she did often. Well, it does not sound good to me. The Sorting Hat blinked. "Err, well--" It probed deeper, until it finally reached the doors which Arianna always tried to keep tightly locked up. The girl heard the hall break into whispers as the hat gasped.
"G-great magically ability, oh, goodness, definitely one of the most powerful students I've ever seen… A strong will, and power, oh, so much power… A thirst for proving and justifying yourself… And enough courage to do so… Tough, very tough…" How about Ravenclaw, then? Arianna asked, and the voice roared back in, angrily.
Slytherin is the best! Why would you want to be in a pansy house like that?
What are you talking about? Slytherin puts out the most dark wizards out of them all!
Which is why we should be in it.
Silence.
…I still think Slytherin sucks.
That's fine and dandy for you, but I'm the one running this show!
No you aren't! I'm the one with control of the body! Hah-HA! To prove her point, Arianna made her hand move. The voice fumed.
You little--!
"QUIET!" the Hat roared, and Arianna and her mental voice silenced. "YOU ARE IN GRYFFINDOR! AND FOR THE RECORD, I'M RUNNING THIS SHOW, SO NYEH!" The Sorting Hat stuck out its fabric tongue. Arianna took it off, muttering. That stupid little piece of… piece of… PIECE OF CLOTH! How dare he?!
Hey, I ain't happy 'bout it, either. But at least he didn't stick us in Hufflepuff… The voice, which Arianna saw mentally as a duplicate of herself, shuddered.
As Arianna placed the hat down, she noticed that the hall was in a stunned silence. Even the Headmaster looked shocked. Arianna grinned sheepishly, and waved. "Err, hi?"
That seemed to wake people up. They applauded loudly as the brunette took a seat at the Gryffindor table beside Bryan. "Cassidy, Kevin!" Professor McGonagall called, and the Sorting moved again.
"Cassidy, Kevin," a pale, homely boy, tripped on his way to the Gryffindor table (after the hat gave up trying to sort him), with the hat still on his head. "Darcy, David," went to Hufflepuff after a good minute of mind-searching, while "Dorgan, Artemis," the redhead from the boat, went straight to Slytherin after the hat barely grazed her hair.
Grace was looking more and more nervous by the minute. "Johnson, Megan," too went to the quickly-filling Hufflepuff table. Arianna grinned as she realized how different Hogwarts must have been to the students like Grace, who had grown up in a Muggle environment. The eleven-year-old had gone to a Muggle elementary school, after all. All the classes were pretty much even, and changed every year. Here was so different…
Arianna applauded as a cute, short male named "Hudson, Brian" became a Ravenclaw. "Lawrence, Aislinn" went over to Slytherin, and "Martins, October," a lithe, purple-haired girl with reddish catlike eyes became a Ravenclaw. Grace gulped as her name was called.
The brunette watched anxiously as Grace slid the hat onto her head. "Hrm…" the voice said, and Grace jumped in her seat. Arianna grinned, silently praying for Grace to get Gryffindor.
"A beautiful mind, always hungry for knowledge… Witty, and intelligent, too…" Arianna stifled a groan. Looks like Ravenclaw for our Gracie… The Sorting Hat looked across the hall with its fabric eyes, and winked. Arianna blinked.
"Ah, yes, the potential for greatness, as well as a thirst for proving yourself… Better make it…" Arianna, as well as her friend, held their breaths.
"GRYFFINDOR!" Arianna applauded loudly in surprise, and yelled out, "Go Grasser!" The blonde shot a glare at the hat before taking her seat next to Arianna, stealing a quick glance at Bryan.
"I thought for sure I'd become a Ravenclaw. I was kind of hoping I'd be one, too," she whispered, letting out a breath. Her hazel-eyed friend nodded. "I was hoping to be a Ravenclaw, too," she admitted, "but the Sorting Hat apparently dislikes us."
Several more students became Slytherins. "Paskins, Angelika" became a Ravenclaw, and "Ross, Evan" became a Slytherin.
The next first year to be sorted caught Arianna's attention. He had long, black hair, tied together at the nape of his neck with a gold band. He had beautiful, deep blue eyes, and ever-so-slightly tanned skin. All in all, he reminded her of someone… But who?
She looked to the Head Table, hoping to catch Remus' eye. He was watching him as well, and the brunette realized just who he reminded her of: He looked like a younger, Azkaban-free Sirius.
"Brilliant mind, willing to go far and wide to learn… Courageous, and friendly… GRYFFINDOR!" Arianna applauded loudly as the boy took a seat across from her, blushing brightly. He looked at her, and she winked. Arianna could have sworn he went even redder, if that was possible.
Soon, there were only three students standing up, waiting to be sorted. Ignazio stepped up, and the duo prayed simultaneously that he would not end up in their house.
As Ignazio went to put the hat on his head, it exclaimed, "Wait a second! I am not touching something that has that much hair grease on!" Arianna snickered. Ignazio sighed, holding the Hat right above his head.
Before long, the Hat yelled, "RAVENCLAW!" Grace and Arianna looked at each other. "This is cruel and unusual," the blonde said, and her best friend nodded.
"Ain't it tha truth, brotha, ain't it tha truth…" she said in a fake accent, that sounded like a mix of New York, Italian, and several others. Grace blinked.
"Don't ever do that again," she said, looking back to the Sorting. Arianna shrugged.
"'Kay."
The next to be sorted, "Young, Ace," was the blonde male from the boat. The hat had barely touched his head when it bellowed, "Gryffindor, for sure!" He took the seat next to Shawn, across from Grace.
Finally, only one more student needed to be sorted. "Zamulino, Fea," a homely, short girl, stepped up to the hat. The hat was silent for a while, before finally saying, "Hufflepuff!" The hall clapped while the Sorting Hat finally fell silent. Professor McGonagall came out and took the hat and stool away.
Albus Dumbledore stood, his arms open wide, beaming as if seeing all his students at the beginning of the year was the best thing in the world.
"Welcome! Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin this delicious feast, I'd like to say a few words. They are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!
"Thank you." Arianna applauded loudly, pretending to wipe a tear from her eye. "Beautiful, just beautiful!" she called out, grinning. Dumbledore smiled at her, eyes twinkling mischievously. The greasy-haired teacher glared at her, and Remus rolled his eyes, but he was grinning.
The entire hall started applauding and cheering as food appeared on the tables. Grace looked amazed at how much food there was. Arianna looked around, and she and Ace yelled simultaneously, "ARE THOSE CALIFORNIA ROLLS?!" They pounced hungrily on the Japanese food.
Grace grinned lopsidedly at them. Munching on tortellini, she asked, "So… what's your sexual orientation?" Shawn gave her a weird look. "I mean… what're your parents, blood-wise?"
Ace gave her a questioning look. Arianna had to fight off a squeal of, "KAWAII!" by stuffing steak into her mouth. "Umm… Sexual orientation, and then family blood?"
Grace shrugged. "Ah, tomato, tamatoe."
The blonde male smiled cutely. "I'm gay, and pureblood." Grace looked at him, and blinked. Arianna reached across the table, patting him on the shoulder. "Err, she was joking, dear," she said, and he tilted his head to one side.
"Ahh…" he said, then shrugged. Arianna grinned at him. "You are too kawaii for your own good, Ace," she said, and Ace grinned back.
"Arigatou gozaimasu, Ara-chan," he replied.
"Sugoi! You speak Japanese, too?"
"Hai!" And so, the two engaged in a conversation completely in the foreign language.
Grace ignored them, turning to Shawn. "Et toi?" she asked. Shawn blushed.
"Ah, I'm a Muggle-born. And for the records, I'm bi," he said, and Grace nodded.
"I'm half-and-half," she said. "Dad was a wizard, Mum's a Muggle. You-Know-Who killed 'im when I was young, so I grew up in the Muggle world." She watched as Arianna turned Kevin Cassidy's goblet into a killer chibi of herself.
"I guess we have a lot to learn," she said, sighing. The chibi latched onto Kevin's face as he ran around the hall, screaming. Shawn sighed, too. "I guess we do."
A loud commotion was heard at the Head Table. The four turned, searching for the cause of it.
Apparently, Kevin had tripped over Professor Flitwick and knocked open a door. Out from the door had come a vicious gray-brown cat, which had attacked the greasy-haired professor's head. Arianna paled slightly. Grace tugged at her sleeve. "Is that Luna?!"
The black-irised professor stood, screaming. "Get this filthy creature off me!" he roared, and many students began to howl with laughter. Remus' flaxen eyes were twinkling with mirth. She could see that Dumbledore's were, too.
Luna scampered off his greasy head to his forearm, tearing at the sleeve. Arianna watched him adopt a horrified look. Several other teachers did as well.
As the cat moved, she left long, thin red scratches. The professor reached into his robes, pulling out his wand and glaring at the cat. He raised it, ready to mutter a curse. Arianna stood quickly.
"There's no need to do that, Professor," she said quickly, and he looked at her angrily. Arianna rushed to the front of the hall. Luna moved from the professor to Dumbledore, who was sitting calmly as the cat settled on his hat.
"Luna!" Arianna scolded, attempting to scoop the feline up. She dug her nails stubbornly into Dumbledore's hat. Arianna tugged harder. "Luna…" she said warningly.
Arianna looked around, eyes locking on Professor McGonagall's plate. She grabbed a piece of cheese, waving it in front of Luna's face.
"Loooooook into the cheeeeeeeeese…" she said, waving it hypnotically. The cat obliged. "Look at the cheese… Love the cheese… OBEY THE CHEESE!" And with that, Arianna threw the cheese across the Hall towards the Gryffindor table. As Luna bent over to consume the yellow substance, Grace swooped down and held her tight.
The hall burst into applause. Arianna bowed, taking her seat again. Luna was purring contentedly in Ace's lap as they dug into the desserts. Finally, all the food disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared, and Professor Dumbledore stood again.
"Well, now that our stomachs are full and our mouths worn, there are a few start-of-term announcements to make.
"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all students. As most of you know, there are many dark creatures and beasts that I am sure you do not wish to deal with.
"This year, Quidditch is open to all students." Almost every student who knew what Quidditch was broke into cheers. Arianna was the loudest.
"Quidditch trials shall be held the last Friday of the month. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch.
"My apologies to all couples who frequent the abandoned room on the third floor of the Astronomy tower. It is currently being reconstructed, but will be usable within the month. I suggest that in the meanwhile you do not use Mr. Filch's office as your—" he coughed, "—new nighttime hangout.
"It is my suggestion that you stay away from the bathrooms near the entrance. Apparently, someone thought it would be rather--" his eyes twinkled, "—amusing to play a prank involving a giant cockroach and seven hundred rolls of toilet paper to start off the term." A first year whom had been left back named Emily Troise ran into the Hall screaming. Toilet paper was hanging from her arms. She managed to get partially in before she tripped over her sandals and fell face first to the floor.
Dumbledore wasn't fazed in the slightest. "This year, we shall begin a new course that will alternate with your Quidditch lessons; Medical Magic. Madam Pomfrey shall be teaching it, and we hope that you will enjoy being able to heal yourself for a change.
"And now a moment of silence for the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher of last year, Professor Sven Twitchura, who met his demise by a lawnmower and a can of soup." The Hall fell silent, until someone snorted. Arianna burst out laughing, which caused almost everyone else to in turn.
"In his place, we have convinced Professor Lupin to return to his place as teacher. We hope you will welcome him with open minds and less abuse than the previous professor.
"And now, let us sing the school song!" Several students groaned. The teachers were trying their best to hold on their now-fake smiles.
"Everyone pick a tune, and here we go!" A long blue ribbon shot from Dumbledore's wand, forming words:
"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something, please,
Whether we be old and bald
Or young with scabby knees,
Our heads could do with filling
With some interesting stuff,
For now they're bare and full of air,
Dead flies and bits of fluff,
So teach us things worth knowing,
Bring back what we've forgot,
Just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains all rot…"
Everyone ended at different times. Grace, Arianna, Ace, Shawn, and several other American students sang in tune with the National Anthem. Dumbledore smiled at his pupils.
"Ah, music… A greater magic than all we can teach you! And now off to bed you scat!" The groups complied, following the prefects to their houses. All the way up the long staircases, Grace (as well as several other Muggle-borns) pointed to random portraits and stairs, squealing with excitement.
"Wild!" Grace exclaimed, prodding at one of the paintings. "If I poke this guy, he pokes back!"
Finally, Arianna had had enough. To all the students, she yelled, "WHY MUST YOU BE SO PURPLE?!" Grace poked her on the nose.
"Ravioli makes the world go round." She reached into her pocket and shoved a ravioli in Arianna's mouth. "Make happy. MAKE HAPPY!"
Arianna blinked and munched on the ravioli. Shawn stared at her. Arianna stared back.
Suddenly she burst out, "HAPPY MONKEY! HAPPY MONKEY!" She grabbed Shawn and started dancing. Then she pushed him backwards. "DON'T HURT THE MONKEH!"
Ace helped the blinking Shawn up. "Won' hurt tha monkeh…" he muttered, and Arianna smiled innocently. She patted them on the head.
"Good Billy," she said, and skipped up ahead. Ace grinned, and followed after them. "Funny girl, isn't she?" he asked, looking at Shawn. The black-haired preteen nodded distractedly.
"Yeah…" he said quietly. "Funny girl… And a helluva pretty one, too…"
~*~
"You."
"You."
"You."
"YOU, DAMMIT!"
"I SAID YOU, YOU PRISSY LITTLE--"
Grace blinked as she walked into the first-year girl's dorm. "What's up?" she asked, gulping down a Sprite. Immediately the two girls who had previously been fighting smiled widely, putting down their weapons of choice.
"Nothing, Grace. It's just--"
Julia Spiegal, a prefect, spoke from her position near the entrance of the room. Her shapely body, barely clothed in all tight black leather, was leaned casually in the door frame. "—that we're two beds short, and these two won't give up their beds," she said dully, taking a long drag from her cigarette.
Arianna strolled in, throwing a lighter to Julia. "Here," she said, tossing herself onto a bed, opening a Japanese comic book titled "Love Hina."
"Thanks, kid," she said, and Arianna shrugged.
"So what's goin' on?"
The prefect tossed her old cigarette down towards the boy hallway. Kevin Cassidy ran screaming down to the corridor, body aflame. She shrugged and lit a new one.
"We're two beds short, so two of you lucky ladies have to volunteer to room with the guys." Arianna grinned.
"Gracie and I'll do it," she said, pulling herself up. Grace blinked.
"We will?"
Arianna grabbed her. "Yup."
Grace nodded, blinking. "Ah." She shrugged. "Didn't know that."
The boys were already setting up their posters and decorations. Arianna waltzed in, followed by Grace, and threw herself on a bed, reopening Love Hina. Bryan and Ace stopped what they were doing.
"…" Arianna rolled over onto her back, glaring at the two males.
"What?"
"…Any particular reason as to why you're in here?"
"Two beds short in girl dorms, two extra beds in boy dorms, you do the math," she said simply, and Bryan blinked cutely.
"Ah… So you're going to drag these beds into the next room?"
The other three in the room blinked. "Err, no, Bryan," Grace said. "We're rooming with you." Bryan nodded, "ah-ing." He smiled at her. The blonde promptly dropped all her bags. Arianna groaned.
"Oh, for the love of moose, Grace--!" Just then, Shawn burst in. He blinked once. Twice. Thrice.
Arianna laughed insanely. "Ha ha, you blinked thrice. Is that even a word?" Shawn blinked again.
"Aww, damn, now you ruined it. What do you call four blinks, Grasser?" Grace shrugged.
Julia walked in. "All settled?" As Shawn was about to say something, she cut him off. "Good. Now go to sleep. Classes start tomorrow. I'm gonna go off and do… something." She tossed her cigarette to the floor, walking out with the same dull expression. The group watched it smolder.
"…You aren't getting that bed."
"Yes I am… Ah, what was your name again?"
"Shawn Russell. Don't you pay attention to anything?"
"Arianna Black. Of course I do. I can't help that I have better things to think about than your name."
A loud battle of wits and words erupted between the two. Bryan blinked. "Wait… Black? As in, Sirius Black? Escaped Convict Black? Only one to escape from Azkaban Bla--"
Arianna glared. "Yes, that Black." Everyone quieted quickly.
"Dude, your dad's a murderer?" Grace asked gently.
Calmly, Arianna replied, "Nope," and went back to reading. Everyone was silent for a moment. Then, Shawn yelled, "HEY, WAIT A SECOND! THAT'S MY BED!"
Arianna grinned. Tossing herself back exaggeratedly, she said, "Nope."
"Is that all you can say?"
"Nope."
"Then say something else."
"Nope."
"…"
"Nope."
"…Shut up."
"Nope."
"ARGH!"
Grace rolled her eyes and chucked a pillow at the brunette. Arianna grinned and tossed it at Shawn. The raven-haired male smacked it towards Ace, who ducked and grabbed it. "Thanks," he said, laying down on the pillow on the bed opposite of Arianna's in the circular room. Grace pouted.
"That is MY pillow, Ace Young."
"Too bad," he mumbled, closing his eyes. Arianna rolled her eyes, grabbing his pillow and tossing it to Grace. She grinned and curled up on her bed. "Thanks."
Arianna shrugged. "Hey, Bryan, got a spare pair of boxers?"
He nodded, handing her a pair of gold and red striped underwear. Arianna started pulling off her pants. Shawn blushed so red he got a nosebleed.
"Oh, puhlease, Russell, don't tell me you blush like Potter."
Immediately, everyone shot up, staring at her.
"You know Harry Potter?!" Grace asked, startled. Arianna slipped into the boxers and pulled off her top. Shawn looked away, blushing.
"Mm-hmm," she said nonchalantly, grabbing one of Ace's button-down shirts. "What's the big deal?"
"WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?!" Shawn yelled, disbelieving. "HE'S HARRY POTTER! HE DEFEATED YOU-KNOW-WHO! HOW CAN YOU SAY IT'S NO BIG DEAL?!" Arianna shrugged.
"I could care less about him. He's just an average teen, although he is a tad nerdish. So what if defeated the Dark Lord? He's just Harry Potter. An average-looking boy with an average name and a not-so-average list of achievements." She shrugged, lying down on her bed.
"He's one of the most powerful wizards ever! He defeated You-Know-Who just last year! Thanks to him, we're rid of one of the greatest evils ever!"
"…Not defeated, Shawn. He locked away Voldemort." Everyone cringed. "There's still the chance that--" Ace glared a warning, "—You-Know-Who could return, should anyone unlock his soul."
"Who could do that?" Bryan asked, laying down on his bed. "No one except Dumbledore is stronger than Harry Potter now that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is gone." Arianna rolled her eyes.
Mentally, she said, I could name at least one person who could, and would, too. She shrugged. Out loud, she said, "You don't know the guy. Anyway, the point is, Harry Potter blushes like a tomato, much like our dear Shawn here. Discussion closed." Ace nodded, yawning.
"Yeah, we need sleep, anyway," he said, pulling the covers up over him. Shawn fell into the bed between Ace and Arianna, and Bryan was already drifting off on the bed between to Ace and Grace.
"Oyasumi nasai, minna-san," Arianna yawned, standing up. Ace looked at her tiredly.
"What're you doing, Ari-chan?"
"Ari-kun," she corrected, stretching. "Ari-chan sounds weird."
Ace rolled his eyes. "Ari-kun, where are you going?"
"For a little tour," she said simply. "G'night, all." Grace was already out. Bryan waved goodbye, and Ace just rolled over. Shawn watched her leave.
~*~
Ah, nothing like a nighttime stroll in the fall, Arianna thought, stretching. She walked out the front doors of the castle into the night.
A small black cat ran up beside her. She picked it up, petting it as she walked to the lake. The rhythmic purring soothed her new-school fears.
She didn't look up as someone approached her. She did note, however, how they tried to keep their footsteps hidden. It sounded heavy, like a male, yet light. The cat looked over her shoulder, and leapt towards the intruder. Arianna continued to look into the water.
"Hello, Venom," she said quietly, still gazing into the water. "Lovely night for a stroll, isn't it?"
Venom looked surprised. "How did you know it was me?" he asked, sitting down next to her. She shrugged, stretching and gazing up at the moon.
"I dunno. I've always had enhanced senses. Or do you not remember?" she asked, looking him over through the corner of her eyes. He looked straight at her.
"Of course I do. I was wondering if you remembered me," he asked, and Arianna nodded.
"Deep in my mind I did." Arianna said, fiddling with her hair. The black cat rubbed against her leg, purring, and she petted it subconsciously. A smile flitted through Venom's eyes.
"Her name's Kagami," he said, and Arianna froze for a second. The cat looked up at her with flashing gold eyes. She nuzzled it with her nose.
"She's cute," she said. An awkward silence fell. Arianna lay backwards on the grass, staring into the night sky.
"They're beautiful," she said quietly. "I used to think that the stars were tears, and every night, they'd disappear and with the sun, the sky would be happy again." Arianna smiled at the memory. "I was so stupid as a kid. But they are beautiful, though, don't you think?"
Venom nodded, but didn't look up. "Yeah… beautiful…" Arianna stood.
"Well, classes start tomorrow," she said, stretching. Venom nodded. The brunette smiled, and hazel eyes locked with gold. "I'll see you around, 'kay?" She skipped over, kissed him on the cheek, and began back to her dorm.
That girl is something else, he thought, falling back into the shadows. His raised his hand, resting it on the place where Arianna's lips had just been.
~*~
Arianna sneaked back into the common room. Luna jumped on her head as soon as se entered, scaring her. "LUMINA P. WINKLETON!" she whispered loudly, "Don't do that!"
She walked towards the fire, rubbing her hands together. The night had gotten chilly, and she didn't really care why the fire was still roaring. As long as she was warm…
"Welcome back, Arianna," a voice said, and she squealed, turning. Shawn blinked from his chair.
"Calm down, it's just me," he said, and she relaxed. "Where'd ya go?"
"For a walk," she said, sitting down in front of the fire. "Why'd you stay up? Worried about me?" she said slyly. Shawn looked down, blushing.
"N-no!" he said, face matching the flames. "I-I just wanted to be sure you didn't lose house points on the first night!" he said quickly. Arianna rolled her eyes. She stood. The raven-haired male went to follow, but tripped. Arianna laughed, extending a hand.
"Here," she said, pulling him up. He went crashing into her, pinning her to a wall. Shawn stared at Arianna. Arianna stared back.
"Grace would laugh for days if she saw us like this," Arianna whispered, grinning. Shawn blushed as her hot breath hit his cold face, but he never looked away from her eyes.
Arianna leaned forward until their noses touched, then gracefully pushed herself back. She smiled innocently, arms locked behind her. "Thanks for worrying, Shawn," she said, and skipped off to their room.
"Sleep tight," she said. As she disappeared, Shawn stared after her. Then he fell back into one of the crimson chairs of the common room. He groaned.
There's a first for everything… But can't the first ever be easy?
~*~
FINISHED AT LAST! Twenty pages, 7,797 words. ^^ I love this fic. It's fun fun fun. ^^ Now, Ara ramble:
1) GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! I was looking through the Narfketeer's
settings, and it was set to "DO NOT ACCEPT ANONYMOUS REVIEWS!" That was evil, so gomen all who tried to review.
2) We have a fanart contest. ^^ It's on the BakaNeko Kouhai
Board (http://bakaneko.unixdaemons.com/oekaki_menu/index.html; click "Kouhai.") If you can oekaki, go there and enter. ^^ You basically have to draw one of the characters (Arianna, Ace, Shawn, Bryan, Grace, Ignazio…) I'm gonna create a site with fanart for this fic and another, so if anyone has fanart, please, PLEASE send it to me. I'll love you forever. ^^;
3) I HAVE A NEW COMPUTER *applause* so things will get out quicker. ^^
Ah, I think that's all I have to ramble about. Now, Review Response-osity:
J. Jucle:
Ara-chan: O.o My Bobby scares me…
Scrat-chan: *bursts out laughing* "Storie"? NOW who's the one not paying attention in school...
Silverclaw:
Scrat-chan: We've already got several very insane and weird people in ze storeh... But shankies for ze offer. Mreeeeeeh. ^_^
Ara-chan: ^^ Wheeeeee! *bangs head against wall too*
Scrat: o_O
Ara-chan: Head Banging is fuuuuun. ^^
Scrat-chan: I can tell.
Tempral Bouncer:
Scrat-chan: H/G tends to go hand-in-hand with my favorite ship, R/Hr, but I'm against pairing Harry with anyone except Cho, because ... *babbles about why pairing Harry sucks* Besides -- Harry's an idiot.
Ara-chan: *sweatdrop* Can't disagree with the last part. But Harry and Cho? *shudder* I've always seen Harry as one to go for one a bit more… masculine… *evil grin*
Scrat-chan: O.o;;;
Well, the next chappie should be out soon. Only one more thing to say:
REVIEW, MINNA!
| | D
| | O
| | W
| | N
\/