Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize including, but not limited to song lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin and original works of fiction by Frances Hodgeson Burnett. I make no money off this-I do it strictly for fun. Enjoy, R/R please!
As the sun rose on Hogwarts, light streamed through in slivers onto Sophie's bed. She sat up, and pulled back the curtains of her bed; the sleepless night lasted forever and she readily welcomed the day. Quietly, she dressed in fresh school robes: Her white blouse was crisp and her tie tied straight, her tights were snag-free and her skirt was pressed. She pulled on her sweater vest and slipped on her shoes, then looked into the mirror on thebureau beside her bed. Her hair was a mess. She combed it and brushed it, but it refused to lay flat. Finally, she took out her wand and muttered a cosmetic spell that smoothed her hair and forced it to lay wrinkle free in a side part that framed her face. Her long ash-blonde hair fell past her waist, and herfringe slanted across her forehead in effort to minimize it. Her face looked hollow, and there were massive dark circles under her eyes. Her complexion was exceedingly pale, which made the circles stand out even more. Her lips were red and swollen; the bottom one was slightly chapped from her constant biting of it-something she did when she was nervous. As she gazed into the mirror, a pained look cam across her face. I guess this is as good as it's going to get …
After grabbing her robe and knapsack, Sophie tiptoed out of the dormitory, careful not to wake her dormmates,and down to the common room which was empty- exactly what she'd wanted. She sat down in an over-stuffed armchair by the fire (already lit by house elves) and took her novel from her bag. The little girl was now sitting in her garden- no, not her garden, her aunt's garden, telling a poor local boy of the mistreatment she received after coming to England from India. The children of a family she'd stayed with teased her with a taunting rhyme in singsong:
How does your garden grow?
With silver bells and cockle shells
And pretty maids all in a row
Why this was offensive, she hadn't really understood before, but yesterday the realization hit her. Mary was a quiet, sad girl. She was different, and the children took her silence for snobbery. That's the way the other students treated her now, all but Luna and Neville. No one flat out teased her with singsong nursery rhymes, but when she'd been around the others, none had spoken to her. They pity me… Part of her liked it- it was what she thought she wanted, but another, smaller part felt lonely and cold. Sophie continued to read until seven-thirty when other students began filtering, sleepy-eyed, into the common room, and she headed to the Great Hall for breakfast.
When she entered the Great Hall, she noticed only one other person was inside. He looked somewhat less exhausted, if slightly distracted, as he gazed out one of the large windows that faced the lake. Sophie took a seat at her house table and food appeared on platters in front of her. Nothing really stuck out as something she wanted to ingest, but she knew she needed to eat. She placed on her plate a sausage, a scoop of eggs, a triangle of toast, and a spoon full of honey. Before eating, she glanced back at Professor Lupin whose attention had moved from the window to Sophie. He smiled and raised his goblet of pumpkin juice in a timid toast, and as she did the same, a small smile curved across his mouth. After half an hour, she'd managed to rearrange her plate completely, but only ate five bites of food. The others slowly began to filter in for breakfast, and Sophie took it as her cue to filter out.
Inside the library, Sophie sifted through the shelves containing books on Muggle Studies. She'd hoped that the library would acquire new ones over the summer- she'd read all the rest. Nothing new here…I guess I'll have to fi- Her thoughts were interrupted by a slimy feminine voice:
"I can't believe the governors are letting that filthy werewolf teach us. It's an outrage, that mangy old beast. Honestly, if Draco's father wasn't in Azkaban, none of this would be happening…" Sophie could feel her face getting hot as Pansy Parkinson defiled Professor Lupin. Sure, he was a werewolf. Everyone knew that, but he couldn't help it. He'd even fought against Fenrir Greyback when the Death Eaters attacked the school last year. She slunk behind the shelve, so she could listen in on her conversation. Another advantage to being so quiet was that you could find out anything. No one heard you, so no one noticed you.
"Oh, Pansy, I'm so sorry about Draco," began another voice. "I always thought you two would be together forever."
"What do you mean thought?" Pansy spat at the other girl. "We're going to get married as soon as the Dark Lord rules again, and that should be in no time…""So he's proposed?" asked the other girl excitedly.
"Well," began Pansy, with a downtrodden tone in her voice. "Not directly, bu-"
"Has he talked to you since he vanished with Snape?"
" Not really…would you look at the time?" she said hurriedly. "We're going to be late for class…"
After the two Slytherins had cleared out of the library, Sophie rose and headed to her first class of the day, potions. She'd never had a strong hand in potions, and Slughorn hadn't chosen her as one of the "precious" few members of the Slug Club. She wasn't extraordinary enough for him- she wasn't extraordinary at all, but it was something that sat perfectly well with Sophie. She didn't really care for the man and did not wish to spend any more time with him than necessary. The class was a boring one, which went by slowly; they didn't attempt to create anything, but were simply briefed as to what they would do in class in the coming year.
Grateful to be away from Slughorn, Sophie sped to her Defense Against The Dark Arts class. Defense Against the Dark Arts had not always been her favourite, probably her one of her least, second only to potions. She hated the Dark Arts- they caused so much pain- and she didn't even want to think about them, much less learn about them. Sophie seated herself at the back of the classroom, her bag on the table, and pulled out her novel. There really can't be much theory behind this classthat I can't learn on my own…
She read until Professor Lupin began to speak, and found that she could no longer concentrate on her book. While he seemed like a timid man outside of class, when he spoke he captivated the room filled with Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs. Everyone's eyes followed him, and he spoke with such a charisma that Sophie no longer cared that what she was learning was something she loathed. When at last Lupin dismissed the class, Sophie felt disappointed; she wished that the lesson would continue so she could stay there and learn all he could teach her. After the other students exited the classroom, she rose and slowly walked out the door and into the corridor. I didn't remember him being such a good teacher. I don't think he ever held my attention like that before…
Classes continued to drag by for several weeks, and Sophie was flooded with relief every time she entered the Defense Against The Dark Arts classroom. Only Muggle Studies could hold her attention as much as this class did, but she could practically teach Muggle Studies. The other students thought her a bit odd for knowing so much about Muggles. She was able to answer questions before her fellow students, and Sophie had assured Ron Weasley several times that she did not now and never had collected any type of plug.
One day a few months into the school year, after Professor Lupin had taught a rather enlightening class on the origins of vampires, he caught Sophie by the arm on her way out the door.
"Miss Featherblade, I trust that you're recovering from the events that took place this summer?"
"I'm as well as can be expected…" her open-ended answer left a confused expression on his face.
"I want you to know, if you ever need to talk about something that's bothering you, I'm here. I'm sure you've heard this several times, but," he put a hand lightly on her shoulder for emphasis, "I mean it. I've dealt wit loss in my life too, and I know how painful it can be. If you ever need anything, anything at all, you can come to me for it." Sophie could tell by the look on his face that he meant it, not like the others that had offered to "talk" with her- she could tell they were just being polite. But with him, she just knew his offer was sincere.
"Thank you, Sir." She turned to leave, but he caught her by the arm.
"Take this." He placed a long, smooth, glass vial in her hand. It contained a pale yellow-coloured pearlescent liquid. She looked at him, imploringly. "It's a sleeping draught that I asked Professor Slughorn to prepare. I know the tell tale signs of a slumberless night when I see one. Pour some into a cup of tea and drink before you go to bed. It's sweet and leaves no aftertaste. That vial should contain enough for seven days, so if you still need it in a weeks time, I'll have one for you then." He pressed her fingers firmly around the vial then walked to his desk and sat down. Sophie was speechless.
"Thank you, Professor Lupin," she managed to choke out. How did he know I needed this? Has he been watching me? Should I even take it? she mused as she walked hurriedly to the Great Hall for lunch. During a lunch of beef stew, she decided that she wouldn't take the potion, and after her last class she buried it in her trunk. She didn't need a potion to help hersleep, she was determinedto do itby herself.
As midnight approached, Sophie realized she could not stand another sleepless night. She quietly got out of her bed, opened her trunk and began to dig for her potion. The vial proved to be much harder to find in the dark than she'd expected, and she realized that she had a way of finding it much more easily. After stubbing her toe on the nightstand in effort to find her wand, she turned to face the trunk.
"Accio Vial,"
After the vial flew into her hand, she climbed into bed and shut the curtains around her. She conjured a cup of Chamomille tea, then poured one seventh of the vial into her cup. Here goes nothing… The tea was pleasantly sweet, just like Professor Lupin had said.
Within moments of finishing her tea, hiding the vial, and disposing of her cup and saucer, Sophie was asleep. She slept soundly for the first time since the night her parents had left her forever.