A Venereal Gift
Disclaimer: All of the characters appearing here belong to Jo Rowling. With the exception of one or two, who I came up with. And the Greek Gods, who belong to.. the Greeks!
Author's Note: I hate back story. I really do. Probably from reading Dickens. At any rate, I do not want to bore you to tears with my version of how my character, Imogene, came to be at Hogwarts School. So, for the sake of brevity, she has always been there. A Gryffindor, like the other three heroes. I'm sorry if this confuses anyone, but none of Rowling's characters seemed to fit this one. And I don't like Mary Sues, either. Call it an Alternate Universe story, if you like. And noooow.. on with the story!
Imogene audibly sighed. The other three turned to look at her, following her languid gaze to the window, which portrayed a beautiful summer day.
"Another gorgeous day, wasted. Really, what is the point? We spend most of our young lives staring out of that window and not actually doing anything about it!"
Hermione, not one for putting up with Imogene's daily complaints, stopped her speech short.
"Maybe if you worked a little harder, you could finish sooner and then spend the rest of your time outside?" she suggested.
"Maybe if I worked a little harder, I might wind up miserable and depressed, to say the least! Honestly, we need some fresh air and sunlight. It does a person wonders!" she retorted.
Harry and Ron looked on bemused at the girls, both of whom were annoyed at the other. Imogene wrinkled her nose in distaste, while Hermione chose to simply raise her book higher, obscuring her face and her scowling mouth. Their work was continued without any further outbursts or inquiries from either side, although Imogene continued to sigh throughout, causing Hermione's hand to twitch every so often.
The two had always been competing, in a friendly way. Hermione was smart. If she studied anything for long enough, it would click. Imogene could study the same subject for days longer, but it would never come to much use. She was witty enough, however, which made up for her poor memory. Imogene was also very much an introvert. She preferred her own company to anybody else's, and often found her friends to be poor company, terribly oppressive.
On this day, for example, Imogene wanted nothing more than to wander out by the lake on her own, drinking in the sunshine. (Although not too much: Her fair skin quickly turned red and her freckles would stand out even brighter across her nose if she was in the sun for too long, making her look both red-faced and spotty. Not that it mattered much. She was rather plain either way.)
She finished scribbling down what words came into her mind, whether they were related to the homework or not, then took leave of her friends, telling them that she would meet them later.
Once outside the doors of the stifling castle, she set off at a run towards the lake. The reflections of the trees in it were beautiful, while the shade of the trees would keep her out of the direct sun.
She looked back on the castle and mused quietly. She knew that she was not popular. With the exception of Harry, Ron, and Hermione, she had no real friends. Nobody took the time to notice her, which she was grateful for, if anything. She was happy, she thought to herself, no matter what she might have felt to the contrary.
Quietly, she walked over to the willow that stood by the lake and sat under it, the branches falling around her like a blanket. She started humming, a little French ditty that she had heard some time ago, but which had remained in her head, forever rearing up when her mind wandered. Her vision became unfocused and she lazily sat back, glad to be rid of work, company, and all the other things that might have annoyed her.
Her friends could tell you that once Imogene unwound like this, nothing in the world mattered to her. It was a shame, because if she had focused her eyes back on the lake, on a shadow in one of the shadiest parts, she would have seen a figure, and perhaps avoided all of the trouble to be recounted.
And that was the first chapter. Short, but I hope not hideous. Review, s'il vous plait!