Chapter 2
Introductions
As the train bore on, the weather changed drastically. The sun, that had flooded Kings Cross station and platform nine and ¾, now vanished behind dark and foreboding clouds.
Eliza started to fidget in her seat, and would not stay still.
"Why doesn't he like me?" she grumbled, gazing out of the window in the compartment door at the empty corridor.
"He just won't smile at me!" Eliza was exasperated and flung the door open in anger. "I am going to go and find Simon." She pouted and left.
Beth didn't say a word. This was typical Eliza behavior. She needed attention from the opposite sex, as much as she needed food and air. She probably felt neglected, just because one boy didn't react to her smiles.
Shaking her head, Beth stood up, and decided to go and look for her friend. Staying in an empty compartment at the beginning of a new school year, was not a thing she wanted to be doing, but enjoying some time with her friends.
Slowly Beth made her way along the swaying corridor. She had to hold on to the window, as the train lunged into a long curve, making the carriage hang dangerously to one side.
Cursing under her breath, she continued on, throwing glances into each compartment as she passed them.
The compartments held, first and second years, innocent and scared looking. Beth felt like giving them a bit of a fright, so she pointed her wand to the window of one of the compartment doors, and muttered a spell under her breath.
Immediately the glass in the sliding door exploded inward, showering the screaming first years in small glass shards. Grinning to herself, Beth flicked a small splinter off her shoulder, and continued down the hall way. She would teach them how to respect the ancient house of Slytherin.
Approaching the front carriages, the students seemed to become older. Beth saw some third years huddled together in a compartment filled with purple smoke, and a squealing second year burst out of another one, sprouting a mouse tail.
Sneering, when the little girl bumped into her, Beth made her way to just that compartment door, knowing exactly who's making that tail was.
"Shielding, come to join the party?" A young man's sneer came from the far corner of the compartment.
"Of course, why, happy to see me, Avery?" Beth glared at the youth, now grinning at her from behind his mop of blonde hair. He sat, casually on the seat; legs spread wide twirling his wand in one hand.
"Been torturing the little ones again?" Beth snickered, sitting down next to Nott, a tall and lanky fourth year of their house. Nott grimaced and Simon Malfoy, who sat opposite Avery, laughed out loud.
"The poor thing stumbled in by accident," Oliver Avery said mockingly. "I thought I'd show her exactly where she belongs." His mates all laughed, as he pocketed his wand.
"Haven't come across Eliza have you?" Malfoy asked hopefully. His light blonde hair quivered in excitement at the mere thought of Eliza.
"I thought she would be in here," Beth said, and gazed out into the corridor once more in search of her friend.
"She is probably running after Tom," Avery scoffed.
"Why the attitude," Beth turned and smiled at him, her lips curled in pleasure, "jealous?"
"Of course,' Avery laughed. "Who wouldn't be?"
At that moment Eliza entered the compartment, pulling with her Cassandra Nigellus, another member of their little group.
"Oh my, did you see his hair?" Cassandra screeched, holding her hand in front of her mouth, "he looks so cute!"
"You have no idea!" Eliza squashed herself between Beth and Nott, talking excitedly.
"So, who looks so great?" Malfoy asked, rather annoyed.
"Oh, no one," Eliza said, grinning at Cassandra, who sat next to Malfoy. "No one at all," but she winked at Beth, mouthing that she would tell her all about it later, when not in company of her ex- boyfriend.
When the train halted in Hogsmead, the overcast day had turned into a thunderstorm. No one felt particularly like leaving the warm train, and stepping onto the slippery wet platform. The night was dark, and the rain was coming down in bucket loads, as the sixth year Slytherins made their way towards the horseless carriages.
As Beth hurried through the crowd, she could make out a very large figure that hovered in front of her.
"Watch this," she hissed to Eliza, and made her way past all he third years, until she arrived just behind the tall figure about twice her size. Pulling out her wand, Eliza muttered, "Severco," and flourished her wand.
At once, the robes of the large boy, ripped in half, and with a big swirl, flew from his body. Everyone screeched with laughter, as Rubeus Hagrid flung out his arms in vain, trying to catch his robes, before they landed on the muddy ground.
"Nice one," Avery nodded, his eyes glinting from beneath his dripping hair. He brushed some strands out of his eyes and grinned at Beth.
"Seriously Hagrid, you don't want to be showing that off to the crowd!" Beth shouted over the laughter of her friends.
Feeling very heightened in spirit, she continued her way through the wet mass of students, the muffled curses of Rubeus Hagrid following them through the rain.
They found an empty carriage and filed in, all dripping wet and cold. Eliza, Cassandra, Avery and Nott, followed Beth into the dark carriage, as a grumbling Malfoy searched for another one.
"Sorry mate, no space," Nott called, but Malfoy was already gone.
"Don't bother," Eliza said, wringing out her glossy curls onto the floor. Beth noticed every boy's eyes on her friend's wet black hair, and sighed inwardly. Sometimes it was very unnerving to be the friend of a beauty queen.