Chapter 8: The Tyranny of Merula Snyde

Dear Mum,

I hope you're alright. It has been a few weeks, and I've been away from you long enough to already miss you. I would've written sooner, but so many things have been happening that I haven't had the time, so I'm writing now.

Hogwarts is amazing! It's just as amazing as you described. The castle is just beautiful, especially at night. I love sitting by the Black Lake, reading my books and watching the Giant Squid's tentacles rise over the surface of the water every now and then.

Also, you'll be proud to know I've been Sorted into Gryffindor House, just like you. I was originally thinking of Hufflepuff, but I ultimately chose Gryffindor. I'm honestly not sure why. Maybe deep down I wanted to be viewed as courageous and chivalrous and not anything like Jacob. I understand he made terrible mistakes at Hogwarts before he disappeared, but it seems like now that I'm here, people expect me to be just like him and get into the same trouble he did, which is not true at all. It's hard to prove to people that I'm not like my brother in any way, and I don't wish to be like him in the future either. I do, however, want to find out what happened to him and what led him to making these terrible choices, but people don't seem to trust me to approach them even to ask for help, like they think I'm going to curse them or something. Even my professors seem to think the same way about me, especially Professor Snape, who teaches Potions. I'm assuming he's new, since you never mentioned him. He's the grouchiest professor in the school, in my opinion, which, I guess, is fitting for the Head of Slytherin House.

Luckily I've got a few amazing friends who support me greatly. Rowan Khanna (also a Gryffindor like me) has been the greatest friend anyone could ask for. She is very intelligent and loves to read just about anything she could get her hands on. Her favourite place in the castle is, of course, the Library, much to Madam Pince's displeasure. Ben Copper is another very good friend, but very cowardly as well, especially for a Gryffindor; although, I believe he'll grow out of his cowardice in the near future. I guess his cowardice makes sense, what with him being Muggle-Born; magic seems like an otherworldly thing to him, but he's quite good at it, especially Charms. I could see him becoming a brilliant Charms professor one day, should Professor Flitwick decide to retire.

Classes are going great. Charms is also a class I have a knack for, as well as Transfiguration. Flying is also quite fun, at least from observation, since we haven't had a chance to properly fly yet. I hope we get to properly fly soon, as I may be thinking of joining our Quidditch Team in later years. Potions is another class I like, but I would've liked it a whole lot more if Professor Snape weren't teaching it. He's so intimidating, but I'm not going to let this distract me from reaching my goal of succeeding in my first year and future years as well. History of Magic is interesting, at least when Rowan is teaching the subject instead of Professor Binns. If I had my way, I'd just let Rowan teach from now on, since she at least keeps the class alive (oops, sorry, Professor Binns). At least Defense Against the Dark Arts isn't a snooze-fest like History of Magic. The class would've been more interesting, had the professor actually had the nerve to teach. The professor is scared of literally everything, including her own shadow. I don't know how she agreed to take the position (they obviously don't call it "Defense Against the Dark Arts" for nothing), but, then again, they say the position is cursed, and those who teach it don't typically stay for longer than a year, if even that. Who knows, maybe we'll get a decent DADA professor next year.

Obviously, you can't attend school without dealing with some kind of bully. One—if not the—biggest bully in my year is a Slytherin girl named Merula Snyde. You have probably read in the Daily Prophet about her parents being sent to Azkaban just before the school year started. Rowan told me about them, and we are under the disturbing impression that Merula could be just like them. Not that she's murdered anybody (yet), but she does like to terrorize anyone and everyone who crosses her path. She seems to have made me her primary target, teasing me and claiming she's a better witch than me. She sabotaged my potion on my first day, and I ended up being punished because of her. She even faked a note and sent Rowan and I to a storeroom filled with Devil's Snare that almost killed me. I honestly don't know how I am going to survive with her tyranny, and my friends and I have thought of everything we could think of. Going to a professor doesn't seem to work, nor the Prefects. One of the Gryffindor Prefects in particular, Angelica Cole, is the worst, telling me to stay out of trouble and whatnot; but how can I "stay out of trouble" with Merula always causing it and then blaming me for it? I figure that the only way to end her tyranny is to join the Dueling Club, which is also something I originally planned to do as an activity outside of class. Of course, I'd have to learn some dueling spells first.

I know I've written much already, but I want to say that not a day goes by that I don't miss Jacob. Despite all the terrible choices he's made to get himself expelled, I still miss him and wish he was here at Hogwarts to help me get through this year. If it weren't for the Cursed Vaults, he'd still be around, supporting me and giving me helpful advice to deal with Snape's grouchiness and Merula's obvious goal to make my life, as well as the lives of many others in my year, at Hogwarts a living Hell. I could use his support now more than ever.

I love you loads and can't wait to come home for the Christmas holidays.

Your loving daughter,

Jane

There is a law known to Muggles, called Murphy's Law, which states, 'if something can go wrong, it will,' and usually it was said to go wrong at the worst possible time. My first day here at Hogwarts turned out to be exactly like that. As I was delivering my letter to one of the school owls in the Owlery, I recalled everything that happened that went wrong that day: my nightmare of hearing Jacob's voice calling out to me from the dark corridors of Hogwarts that were filling with what I could only describe as 'cursed ice;' having the misfortune of meeting the ruthless and tyrannical Merula Snyde, who had an obsession to make my life even more miserable than it already was at the time; my Cure for Boils Potion being sabotaged by Merula and being forced to redo it later in the evening under Professor Snape's watchful eyes; and being lured to a storeroom in a secluded part of the castle, also by Merula, that contained Devil's Snare that nearly tore me apart. I couldn't imagine a worse first day than the one I had experienced. I guess I'm that cursed, I thought dismally to myself.

"Whatever goes on in that twisted mind of hers, I'll never know," I said to no one in particular as I left the Owlery.

#####

"Can you believe it, Jane?" Rowan said excitedly as we arrived on the Training Grounds for our next Flying Class on Tuesday the following week. "We're finally gonna be learning to fly rather than just observing how to fly."

I frowned. "I thought Madam Hooch said we'd be learning to summon a broom, not fly it."

"Really?" Rowan frowned. "Oh, I must've missed that part. Oh well, I'm still excited anyways. I always preferred the hands-on experience over just plainly observing."

"Me too," I agreed.

"I don't," Ben Copper said with apparent dread in his voice as he approached us. "I'd much prefer observing over anything else any day. That way, I wouldn't have to get hurt."

"Ben!" I exclaimed upon seeing him. "How are you? I haven't seen you much this week except in class."

"That's because I've been hiding all week," he admitted. "I've been looking for all sorts of places to hide when things get too terrifying. All this stuff to do with magic and flying—it's like I'm living in a whole other world, but it's a world that shouldn't exist except in one's imagination. How do you live with it all?"

I shrugged. "It's complicated to explain, Ben, but I'm sure you'll get used to it very quickly. I know that doesn't sound like very helpful advice, but that seems to be what people do. Just give yourself more time, Ben, and everything will be okay. We've only been here a few weeks."

"True," he sighed, "but these weeks have been Hell for me personally. Being pulled into a world I never knew existed… Living in said world without my parents around to give me advice because they know nothing about anything to do with magic… Making a total fool of myself in front of the whole school during the Sorting Ceremony… Being called a Mudblood…"

"Well, of course!" said an all-too-familiar voice—the Mistress of Hell herself, Merula Snyde. "That's what we call your kind in the Wizarding World. If you know nothing of our customs, then clearly you don't belong here."

"Shut your mouth, Merula!" Rowan said, annoyed. "No one asked for your opinion!"

"And I didn't ask to be yelled at by a four-eyed bookworm," Merula snapped back. "You seriously need to learn some manners. Clearly that Devil's Snare didn't discipline you well enough." She then sniggered. "Oh, wait…that was Morgan!"

I had had enough of this little snake. First, she picked on me, and now she was starting to pick on my friends. Someone had to stop her from harassing the school, and I didn't mind being one to volunteer.

I stood forward. "You know what? I sincerely hope you get bashed in the nose at the end of this class, Merula. You'd certainly deserve it after you almost killed me."

Merula snorted. "I almost killed you? You mean the Devil's Snare almost killed you. Besides, you have no proof that it was me who was responsible; and even if you did have proof, who would believe you? Everyone thinks you're mad because of your freak brother. Sooner or later, even the Headmaster will find out you're as big of a freak as your brother is, and he'll kick you out of Hogwarts before you know it. I'm betting you'll be out of here before even the first term ends."

I clenched my hands into fists, wanting so badly to punch her with one of them, but I fought myself to hold them back. Instead, I said under my breath, "I don't give a rat's ass what you think about me or my brother. Nothing is going to stop me from finding him, and I'm not going to let you get in my way of accomplishing that goal."

Merula looked like she was about to say something snooty back when Madam Hooch called in the background, "Class is about to begin, students! Everyone please find a broom and gather around the Broom Care Table."

After being interrupted, Merula must've forgotten what she was going to say (good riddance, I thought with a slight smirk), so instead, she muttered, "We'll see about that," and walked away without another word. Thank you, Madam Hooch, I thought in reply.

"I hate her," Rowan declared behind me. "I'd like to see more than her nose get bashed at the end of this class."

"You got into a fight with Devil's Snare?" Ben said, evidently shocked. "I hadn't heard about that. That must've been terrifying."

I nodded. "It was. I'll tell you about it while we're polishing our brooms."

Ben suddenly shook his head. "Actually, you don't have to. Every time I hear about something terrifying, that terrifying thing ends up appearing in my dreams at night. I've been having nightmares lately about falling off of a broom."

"Well, maybe if I tutored you in Flying, you wouldn't have to dream about falling off a broom again," I suggested as we gathered around a pile of brooms and chose one to our liking to polish for class. A few days previously, I had told Ben that I was thinking of learning some Flying tricks in preparation for Quidditch Tryouts in later years, and I had offered to teach him some Flying tricks as well to help him overcome his fear of flying, but he always declined.

"I know we've had this conversation before," he said, declining yet again. "I'm still thinking about it." He then ran off to the opposite side of the table, clearly not interested in discussing the topic further, at least today.

"You really think you'll get Ben to have the balls to fly on a broom, as cowardly as he is?" Rowan asked a little doubtfully.

"He has to overcome his fears of Hogwarts at some point," I said honestly, "especially flying. Why not start now? Otherwise, he'll stay a coward, and who knows where he'd be after graduation. I doubt he'll be able to survive on his own without hiding in a cupboard for the rest of his life. I'm going to help him, whatever it takes." That, and stop Merula's tyranny once and for all…somehow, I thought to myself.

If I had to be honest, that day's class was slightly less boring than any of our past Flying classes, because this time, at least we had the opportunity to do something with a broom. We learned to polish them, which wasn't remotely exciting in the slightest, and then shortly after, we learned to summon our brooms, simply by sticking our hand over the broomstick and saying firmly, "Up!" For some—myself being, surprisingly, one of the lucky few—their brooms lifted into their hands right away, but for others, it was a bit more challenging. For Rowan, she was able to summon her broom after two attempts, and Penny Haywood summoned hers in four attempts. However, much to our amusement, Merula was struggling the most. After about the sixth attempt, her broom swung up and knocked her clean in the nose, exactly how I had hoped.

"Serves you right, Merula," Rowan sniggered. "Despite being inanimate objects, even brooms can recognize homicidal maniacs such as yourself."

"Shut up, Four-Eyes!" Merula shouted at her before being bashed in the nose again, this time much harder where blood spewed in all directions.

"Looks like it's the Hospital Wing for you, Miss Snyde," Madam Hooch said from off to the side, noticing Merula's heavily bleeding nose. "Off you go. You too, Mr. Zenger."

Merula looked like she wanted to jinx me right there (as if I had anything to do with this, which I didn't), but luckily Madam Hooch pulled her away from us and pushed her back toward the castle.

"Looks like your wish came true, Jane," Rowan smiled at me. "How much do you want to bet her potion won't be near as good as yours tomorrow?"

"Let's not get our hopes up," I said a little nervously. "Who knows what she'll sabotage next."

#####

Unfortunately, Rowan's prediction that Merula's Wiggenweld Potion wasn't going to be near as good as mine was proven false. Despite getting every step completed correctly—this time without allowing Merula or anybody else to sneak Bulbadox Powder into my potion again—Professor Snape still believed Merula's potion to be better, or rather 'flawless,' as he put it. Of course, Merula bragged that Snape "recognizes perfection when he sees it," as well as adding that I was nothing but an embarrassment to Gryffindor House as well as Hogwarts. So typical of her, I thought dismally in my head. I guessed this was her way of proving that nothing could bring her down and stop her from ruling the school, but I was planning to change that.

By the time the weekend came, I was having a particularly hard time, dealing with Merula's tyranny on almost an hourly basis and over half the school refusing to trust me because of my brother's bad reputation, so Rowan decided to try to cheer me up with a leisurely game of Gobstones (which was a game similar to the Muggle game of Marbles, the only difference being that Muggle losers didn't get spewed in the face like in the Wizard version) in the Courtyard. Jacob and I had often played Gobstones when we were younger, long before his obsession with the Cursed Vaults. If only the vaults hadn't torn us apart, then he'd still be here. He always knew what to say to make me happy.

"Thanks for doing this for me, Rowan," I said as we played. "I could use a break from all the rubbish I've been dealing with, not just with Merula and Snape. Because of my brother, no one seems to want to trust me, and sometimes I think you're the only one who does."

"That's not true," Rowan shook her head. "Ben trusts you, and Penny Haywood, and Professor Flitwick. He thinks you have a real knack for Charms. I heard that one day he might want to hire you as a tutor."

"Really?" I asked a little doubtfully. "I never heard that."

"It's true," Rowan assured. "You should ask him about it next class. I think you'd make a fine tutor."

"If only I could help Ben overcome his fear of flying, that'd be an excellent start," I admitted. "I know there's bravery in him somewhere; why else would the Sorting Hat have placed him in Gryffindor?"

"No offense, Jane," Rowan shook her head, "but you're putting your faith in the wrong person. I don't think there's anyone more cowardly than Ben Copper."

"Give him a chance, Row," I said, feeling great offense. "If you don't, he'll never learn to overcome anything. You just need to be patient with him. He is Muggle-Born, after all."

Rowan sighed. "Fine, fine. Are you gonna take your turn, or not?"

I reluctantly took my turn, but at the same time I couldn't help feeling a bit frustrated at everyone for the way they were treating Ben. Every day, people talked about how cowardly he was, but I didn't think they ever thought about what Ben was truly like on the inside. On the outside, yes, everyone saw a coward; and admittedly, so did I. But on the inside, I believed there was the soul of a true lion—a brave and loyal leader that could rise above anything and face his enemies without fear. Ben may not have been able to sense that in him, but I was going to help him sense that, no matter what that took.

"Good game, Jane," Rowan praised after I had won. "Some people think Gobstones isn't cool, but I've always considered it to be the thinking witch's Quidditch. Thanks for playing. I've never been especially good at making friends."

"We became friends pretty quickly," I said honestly. "You helped me a great deal in Diagon Alley. I wouldn't have known my way around if it weren't for you."

Rowan smiled. "It was no problem. I was glad to help; in fact, I would've done it anyway. You seemed to be struggling a bit at the time."

"I was," I nodded in agreement, "but thanks to you, I found everything I needed. You're a really good friend, Row."

She smiled again. "It was nothing."

"Well, well, what do we have here?" said an all-too-familiar voice behind me. "A pair of losers spending the day in their own little world of Loserville. Is there anything less pathetic?"

"Why don't you just leave us alone?" I sighed, rolling my eyes as I stood up from the floor. At this point, I had had it with her snippy attitude and useless bullying. It had to stop.

"Is it not obvious?" Merula said in an incredulous tone. "Because you're a danger to Hogwarts just like your freak brother, and none of us will be safe until you're gone."

"What are you talking about, Merula?" Rowan said angrily, also standing up.

"I've been doing a little research on Morgan's brother," Merula said matter-of-factly. "Turns out he didn't just get expelled for endangering the entire school in search of some imaginary vaults…" She then looked at me with a crude smile. "He immediately went missing, and the next time he was seen he was working for Voldemort."

"You can't say that!" Rowan cried, astounded. "You have to call him 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named' or 'You-Know-Who!'"

"I'll say what I want," Merula said, rolling her eyes carelessly.

That was the final straw. She'd gone too far, saying what she said about my brother. "You're lying about my brother having anything to do with You-Know-Who!" I yelled in her face. That was a lie; it just had to be. Jacob would never join him, even if his life depended on it.

"No wonder the professors were talking about you before the Feast," Merula sniggered. "They're wondering if you work for the Dark Lord too."

"That's ridiculous!" I roared incredulously. "I would never work for a cold-blooded murderer like him!" I then shot her an intense glare. "Besides, I don't know why you'd ever bring up You-Know-Who given your family's history."

In a fraction of a second, I saw Merula's body shudder at my words. "Y-You don't know anything about me…" she stammered.

"Thanks to Rowan's research, I know that your parents are locked up in Azkaban for being loyal to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named in the Wizarding War," I explained. "They tortured and killed millions of witches, wizards, and Muggles alike, and I wouldn't be surprised if you grew up to be just like them. Who knows, maybe you already are like them in every way."

Just then, I felt a sudden pang of sadness for her. Because her parents were stuck in prison, Merula had no one to care for her, no one to look up to, which explained the way she'd been acting since the school year started. "I finally understand why you're always so angry," I said somewhat apologetically. "You got no one to look up to for guidance. The people you love are locked away, never to be seen again. You want to be strong, to forget that they're gone, but nobody trusts you. You just want someone who can trust you, but the only way to get someone's attention is to lash out. You want to be 'the best,' because you got no friends."

Merula suddenly shook her head, having enough. "Why don't you just drop out of Hogwarts? Save Gryffindor and your little friend here the embarrassment of being associated with you!"

"You're just afraid that I'll be better than you!" I snapped back. Of course she was afraid of competition, wanting to get to the Cursed Vaults before me so that she could get the attention and praise she deserved after the incarceration of her Death Eater parents.

"Afraid?" she yelled just as angrily. "I'll duel you right now!" She then took out her wand.

I shook my head, not interested in the slightest in having a rerun of our first meeting. "You aren't worth my time, Merula. Keep this nonsense to yourself. Come on, Rowan." We started walking back toward the castle after we packed up our Gobstones game.

As we were walking, Merula did something Rowan and I weren't expecting. She screamed, "DON'T WALK AWAY FROM ME!" and cast a spell I didn't recognize. "Flipendo!"

Just as suddenly, my legs swung out from under me involuntarily, like someone purposefully kicked my legs from behind, and I fell hard on my backside.

In pain, I looked up at Merula as she said, "Learn a few more spells, Morgan. Maybe next time you'll put up a fight." She then walked away, laughing hysterically.

"Are you alright?" Rowan asked as she helped me up.

"Yeah," I groaned, rubbing my backside. "Merula is never going to leave us alone, not unless we learn more spells and find someone who can teach us how to duel. That's the only way we'll have a chance at stopping her tyranny once and for all. We just need to figure out who."