Iris's furious, magma-like anger lasted only a few days, settling down into a quiet loathing.
She would have yelled at the elder Potters until her face turned blue, but really, what was the use? It was so… Gryffindor, shouting out your feelings and intentions for all the world to hear, and having to agenda besides expressing whatever emotion you were feeling that day.
No, Iris was a Slytherin, and it was time she acted like one. They wanted to pretend like twelve years of abandonment and neglect never happened? She'd never let them forget exactly what type of hell they condemned her to, even for a moment.
This was a kidnapping—a group of strangers taking someone from where they belonged and imprisoning them somewhere else—and so she decided to treat it as such. She spent most of her day in Potter library, alternating reading some… suggestive material Dante had lent her at Hogwarts and legal texts relating to emancipation and guardianship rights.
Fortunately, the laws seemed on her side in this case. As the eldest daughter of a noble house, she was entitled to certain rights and privileges, which she had certainly not received at the Dursleys. Unfortunately, it wasn't nearly as many as the eldest son of a noble house would get, but they still existed, and because they did, the Potters lived in violation of almost every single one of them.
Adequate food, water, and shelter befitting a noble lady? No fucking way
A basic understanding of Latin, reading, writing, and basic arithmetic? Nope!
An education in the arts of women (sewing, flower arranging, etc.) so that she might one day make a home? A bit offensive, but hey, whatever works.
In fact, by the standards the Occidentian government had for the children of nobles, she technically didn't even have a childhood: her upbringing feel more into archaic rules dealing with servants than anything else, and even then, they were worse. If the magical world had ever had the type of massive chattel slavery the muds had, Iris thought there might be a few laws on the books for her situation, but since it didn't, there weren't.
There was something else she'd noticed too. James, Miriam, and the rest of the Potters, they were all just so… empty.
At least, that's the best way she could describe the emotional void they had in her new sense of magic. There were no emotions or impressions, or even vague feelings like there were in parts of the natural world. No, for all intents ad purposes, the Potters were the same as a desk or a chair: silent, man-made, and completely dead.
She thought she understood why Rells disliked hanging out with Nics so much, this was just… unnerving. Like talking to a slab of concrete.
Iris was drawn out of her thoughts be the creak of her bedroom door: Miriam was here for her daily checkup, right on time.
"Iris?" she said, her voice soft, like the one used to speak to a small child.
"Yes Miriam?" Iris said, her voice tired and mildly irritated.
"I waned to let you know that you'll be going to a children's group after Church tomorrow, and playing with some of the other young ones."
"I don't really have a choice in the matter, do I? But if you're honestly asking I'd rather not: your god wasn't there for me when I prayed for Vernon's beatings to stop, so I don't really have a huge amount of fondness for him."
Miriam visibly restrained herself: "I have to say Iris, your father and I both are disappointed in you."
"You and James are strangers to me Miriam. Not to be rude, but I really don't care about your opinion, I just don't know you. Not even factoring in the whole neglect and abandonment deal."
"Young lady, stop those horrific words right now! We both know you're lying Iris, so why on earth do you continue with this tantrum? Repeating lies often enough doesn't make them the truth. We are trying to bear your petty jealousy, but you are just making it so difficult! I know you're angry you didn't get to grow up a celebrity, but you should be thankful you didn't have any of the stresses of fame!"
"I don't want to be famous anyways, and your idea that I do is completely insulting. Even disregarding that, you love your fame, so you have no place to talk."
"Iris how dare you! You are our daughter, and by the Lord Almighty, you will start to act like it! If James and I don't see any improvement in your beliefs or temperament by the end of the school year, we will be forced to take drastic measures!"
"No Miriam, you won't. To you, 'drastic measures is grounding'. To me, it's having both my arms broken instead of just one. You can't threaten me after the hell I've been through."
"Will you stop it with this… this 'abuse' nonsense! I should have Danny come in here and tell you exactly how hard a magical childhood is, especially a famous magical childhood, so you can see how lucky you really had it to grow up with muggles!"
"What was Danny's seventh birthday like? I'm presuming a huge pile of presents, and a massive party? Do you know what my seventh birthday present was? I got clean the floors with bleach for twice as long, because 'freaks don't deserve nice things on their birthdays'."
Miriam continued to rant for another five minutes straight about duties and familial respect and dozens of other things she'd never been shown once in her life, until she eventually ran out of steam once she realized Iris had gone back to her book. Eventually, she just left with an angry yell, muttering something about "encroaching darkness" and "infecting" her "babies". Iris wasn't really paying attention.
A few minutes later, Iris was fully absorbed her novel, when she was startled out of Lady Bancroft's seduction of her shy handmaiden by the sound of feet walking across the library carpet. At first, she tensed up, thinking it was James, but then she realized the feet were war to quick and light to be him, or even Miriam.
She looked up to find, of all people, a blushing Cassie Potter standing in front of her couch, charms book shyly clutched to her chest.
"Yes?" she said, making sure to moderate her tone. Her hate was reserved for those who earned it, after all, and she truly couldn't bear Cassie any ill will for the family she had the great misfortune of being born into.
"I-I wanted to know if it was alright if I…" she trailed off into inaudible whispers.
Despite herself, Iris found herself fighting a smile. Oh Merlin, this was how Blaise felt when dealing with her, wasn't it?
Cassie seemed to gather her courage, and said out all at once: "iwantedtoknowificouldreadwithyouplease!"
"…"
"Y'know what? Sure. You deserve it after that."
Iris chuckled and went back to her book, spending the next hour, for the first time in her life, in the presence of a Potter who didn't immediately drive her to murderous anger.
Apparently, Cassie reading with her became something of a regular event. Whenever she could, Cassie would walk up to the couch opposite hers in the library and lie down, spreading out and reading whatever particular book she had decided to read. They almost never talked, only exchanging the barest of pleasantries, but still, Iris wouldn't deny that it was… nice.
Well, as nice as any day trapped in Potter manor could be, instead of spending it frolicking with beautiful, wonderful Blaise in her manor in Genoa, cuddled up on a couch next to a cooling charm, barely wearing anything but the barest of clothes…
Iris trailed off for a good fifteen minutes, able to dive into romantic daydreams without guilt now that she was out of the presence of her crush. Still though, "frolicking"? Dante's romance novels were starting to get to her.
"Umm… Iris?" Cassie said, speaking up for the first time in the past week.
Iris was so shocked at the sudden change of pace that she could do nothing but nod.
"S-so Iris, I j-just wanted to s-say… I believe you."
Iris just stared.
Cassie squeaked, and seemed to retreat even further into her seat: "I mean! I believe you about the stuff you said on the train platform I could tell from your voice you weren't lying and I'm so so sorry mom and dad weren't there for you and I'm–"
"Thank you."
"…w-what?"
"Thank you Cassie. You're the first Potter who's ever believed a word I've said. You're not nearly as bad as the rest of them."
"H-hey! Don't say s-stuff like that! Just because I believe you d-doesn't mean I think you should be hanging out with v-v-vampires! They're called d-dark creatures for a r-reason!"
"Cassie…"
"I-I mean, I get w-why you'd hat mom and d-dad, but t-that doesn't mean you should go p-put yourself in danger!"
Against her will, Iris snorted. "I assure you Cassie, the only thing I'm in danger of around Blaise is being embarrassed to death. What do you think we do together, plan evil satanic rituals where we drink the blood of virgins?"
"…"
"I mean, seriously, I don't even get why vampires have such a bad rap! They're mages, just like you and me, and they don't harm anyone."
"B-but don't t-they have to drink o-our blood to s-survive?"
Iris was about to storm back to her bedroom/prison in anger, but something in Cassie's expression made her pause. She seemed honestly curious, and not derisive or arrogant like her parents or elder siblings.
Iris honestly considered if there was a Potter she could make… less irritating.
"Actually Cassie, that's a common misconception" Iris said, smiling genuinely for the first time since the break started. "Vampires drink the blood of their bond-mate to survive, not any random mage on the street. They can actually feel the emotions of the people they feed from, so it wouldn't feel any good to take blood by force, even if they wanted to."
Cassie's stutter seemed to evaporate in the face of a puzzle she wasn't able to solve. "W-wait, but isn't that actually worse? Like, having a mind-controlled slave instead of a random person."
"What! Where on earth did you–… Fucking James."
"Hey! D-Don't talk about my dad like that! I know he and mom weren't great to you, but he's not a bad person!"
"Cassie I'm… well, I'm not sorry, because I really do hate your father, but I'll refrain from insulting him when we talk for your sake. It's not just for abandoning me to hell, by the way, I hate how he spreads these bigoted beliefs about people I care for."
Cassie glared—well, as much as someone as shy as her could glare—but seemed to accept that as the best she was going to get.
"I'm actually good friends with one of those 'mind-controlled slaves', and trust me, he's the furthest thing from a submissive pet you can be. He's a normal, everyday mage, and the vampire mate-bond only affects him as much as he lets it. It's a mutual thing that goes both ways, kinda like an emotional link. If Blaise was shitty to him, the bond wouldn't exist."
"I don't… that d-doesn't… Iris she has to be t-tricking you, she's a vampire!"
"Cassie, vampires are normal mages. They love, they hate, they feel pain and sadness and joy. They're no different from you or me. Go to Hogwarts, talk to some 'dark creatures', and then tell me if they deserve to be hunted down and slaughtered like your parents say."
"W-what! I don't want g-genocide!"
"Well, the people whose beliefs you're spouting certainly do. I'm just… I just can't stand how most sorcerers think that my friends, and everyone like them, aren't any better than wild animals. These people are my friends Cassie! They're not dark, or dangerous, or evil. They're just normal mages, trying to do their best for themselves and their brethren."
"Brethren?"
Whoops.
"Uhhh, y'know, their other fellow non-sorcerers. That's the term."
"Wait, aren't they all sorcerers? Are there vampires that aren't wizards and witches?"
"Oh, no, 'mages' is everyone magical, 'sorcerers' are magical humans."
"I've never heard that before, is that how dar–… your friends talk about us?"
"It's how I talk about us, Cassie. Don't forget, I'm one of 'them'. If Blaise and the rest of my friends get tied to a stake for not bowing down to the muds, I'll be right there next to them."
"A-Alright" Cassie said, dropping that line of thought, "let's say you're right, and that dark creatures are actually just an oppressed minority, like I hear about in the muggle world. Why would my dad do that? H-He's not a bad person, no matter what mistakes he's made with you. Why would society do this? Wizards and Witches aren't bad people, I know that. I'm friends with plenty of decent people, that would never support murder! Your idea that they're all bloodthirsty oppressors just isn't true."
"Mages…" she finally said, after a contemplative pause, "they can be bad. They can be awful. Christianity and the rest of those muddy religions hate us, they fear us, and they've turned us against each other. Every mage who believes in the muds' god gets infected by that awful taint. You may not think they're hateful, but that's only because you've been around the in-group your whole life. They all love each other, they just hate us."
"'Muds?!' S-See, that's why I don't believe you! You talk about tolerance and acceptance, but then you turn around and act just as bigoted towards muggles as you claim people like dad are towards your friends! Muggles are people too, and you can't just call them m-mud!"
"Cassie…" Iris said, frowning, "have you ever actually met a mud—fine, for the sake of the argument, a muggle—before?"
"Well… sorta? Dad and Mom tried to take us on this trip to muggle London to 'show us what they're working towards', or something, but they left pretty quickly after people started looking at us weird, and then…"
Cassie trailed off, realizing how weak her own arguments sounded.
"Well Cassie, I was raised by mu– muggles, and let me tell you, they are nothing like James and Miriam tell you they are. They were afraid of me, terrified of me, every single one of them. It wasn't just the Dursleys, it was everyone. I went to my teachers and told them what Vernon and Petunia were doing, and they just told me to stop 'disrespecting a pillar of the community'!"
"T-that doesn't mean all muggles are bad Iris! Just because the ones in your town weren't good people, doesn't mean they're all… evil or something!"
"You really think it was just my town? By some amazing coincidence, every single resident of Surrey just happened to be a uniquely terrible person, even by mud standards? We both know you're too smart to believe that."
"But why! Why would an entire town h-hate you, when you were just like them! It just doesn't make sense!"
Cassie's stutter had completely vanished by this point, as absorbed as she was in the argument.
"Cassie, you don't get it, I wasn't like them, I'm a mage. My eyes glow in the dark, strange things happen around me, and every mud could feel my aura whenever they were near me. They may not have known what I was, but some primal, half-forgotten part of their brain still feared me, back from the times when they knew what we were, and rounded us up like cattle."
"You may go out into a muddy street, and see muds smiling at each other and acting all normal and happy, but underneath that? They're fucking animals. Just like any animal, they're nice and sweet when they're happy, but the minute they get scared, or angry, or even mildly displeased, they try to maul whatever's disturbed them."
"You don't get it Cassie, the muds even treat each other like pieces of shit. You know what was in the news, almost every single miserable day I spent in that hellhole? Rape. War. Famine. Poverty. Hatred. Mass killings. The muds might act nice some of the time, but when things get tense, get heated, they fucking eat each other."
"Try reading some of their history. Whenever Dudley was trying to beat the living shit out of me, I used to hide out in the public library, because he'd never go there. I read all about the awful, terrible things the muds do to each other: pretty much their entire history is one giant orgy of blood!"
Cassie was speechless in the face of Iris's impassioned rant, and slowly turned back to her book, a thoughtful expression on her face. A few minutes later she looked up, pensively.
"I-Iris. Let's say that everything you say about muggles is true. Are wizards any better? We have jails and prisons too, full of all sorts of awful people. We can act bad when we get desperate, just like them. It isn't because they're muggles, it's because they're human, just like wizards and witches."
"It's 'mages' Cassie, at least respect your own people. And yes, to acknowledge your point, we can be. It shouldn't be like that though, it's not supposed to."
"I won't go and blame everything on the muds, because I know you wouldn't believe me, but I promise you Cassie, if you start appreciating magic the way you're supposed to… Circe, you couldn't ever harm another mage for as long as you lived. Anything else is just the mud that got flung all over us."
"That doesn't make any sense though! How can casting spells differently solve societal problems!"
"It's not– It's just–… Cassie, I can't talk about some things here, right in the library of the most rabid Nic in the prefecture. Come find me at Hogwarts, and then we can talk. If you're really open-minded, I'll show you what I mean."
"Iris! I won't participate in any dark magic! I was willing to give you a chance, but I can't if you're offering to do things like that!"
"It's not dark magic Cassie! What do you think 'dark magic' even is?"
Cassie paused, the wind taken out of her sails. She sat for almost thirty seconds in silence, formulating a response.
"I think… I would say that it's magic meant to addict you, meant to harm others. It's magic that corrupts your soul."
"Any spell can be harmful Cassie: you can kill someone with the basic levitation charm you learn in first year. Also, 'Corrupts your soul'? I thought you weren't big on all that Jesus stuff."
"Hmm… Alright, I'll concede that point, but you have to acknowledge that dark magic is addictive. If it was just like any other type of magic, you'd have dark wizards using all types of spells, but they don't: my dad's an auror, and I can tell you that dark wizards almost exclusively use dark magic."
Iris pursed her lips, and cast a few spells to make sure they were truly alone.
"I… I'd have to get back to you on that, in regards to the spellcasting thing, but in terms of basic… Morgana, I shouldn't be talking about this here of all places, but I'm talking about paganism, the type of stuff that doesn't even affect anyone who doesn't want to be affected."
Iris's eyes widened, realizing how close she'd come to revealing things that she most definitely should not want to reveal to anyone with the surname 'Potter'.
"I mean, I'm not a pagan! I'm not saying that! I'm just saying that if someone was a pagan, they aren't harming anyone, you know?"
Cassie looked unimpressed.
"Come off it Iris, we both know you're a pagan. What, am I supposed to be shocked? I know you're a Rell, Iris, that much is incredibly obvious from how you keep talking about 'our God' and 'our kind'. My mom and dad may not see it, but I do."
Iris's eyebrows jerked up, almost out of her control.
"And… you don't have a problem with that? If James or Miriam found that out, I think we both know what the response would be, so why not you?"
"I… I know my dad and mom always talk about how evil you guys are, but I just don't get it. I mean, don't get me wrong, I think worshipping magic is weird and all, but I don't see how just having a different religion means you're a bad person. Now, your beliefs about muggles are something totally different, but you aren't a bad person just for your religion itself. If… I-If we're being honest here, I don't really believe in Christianity, at least the type mom does. I d-don't know of anything that can't be explained by magic and logic; we don't need miracles."
"At least", Iris said, smirking, "we can agree on that, my dear half-sister."
The silence of their reading was much more comfortable after that, and Iris felt the huge burden on her shoulders lighten just a tiny bit.
A few day had gone by since Cassie and Iris's conversation, and once again, James and Miriam were trying to "reform" her.
"So Iris dear, I was thinking: we should go take a trip, as a family! I realized that Appleby actually looks lovely this time of the year, so I thought it would be nice for everyone to see where I grew up as a girl!"
They tried this every few days: invite her out on a "family" outing, where they'd just happen to run into a group of Gryffindor alumni, usually her godfather Sirius, or her honorary godfather Remus Lupin.
"Miriam, really, we're not a family. I'm a guest in your house, at best, so I don't understand why you keep trying to include me in things. I'm a girl raised by abusive muds, who doesn't really care for you or most of your family. You should find someone else to bond with."
Hey, spend enough time around Theo, any you learn a few tricks. Iris still couldn't replicate his droll, mocking tone of voice, the one that let the listener know he thought them barely more intelligent than worm underneath his show, but she thought she could do pretty well for herself in her own right.
"Iris! You will not speak to my wife in that tone! I am your father, and you will at least show some basic decorum when you live under my roof!"
"Is that an offer to leave James? Because I'll gladly take it, and go to Blaise's manor, where I'm supposed to be spending my break. And you aren't my father; the only man who could conceivably claim that title used to break my femur as a Christmas present."
As she continued to speak, James's face slowly grew more and more red, and when he spoke, his tone registered just shy of bellowing.
"Iris Dorea Potter, I have had just about enough of your tantrums! I swear to God, we are not going to back down on this today. You are going to socialize with your family tomorrow, or else."
"Or else what James, you'll kick me out? If you are, the pigs that raised me never let me run away when I tried, so at least you're winning on that front."
"No, or else I'll get out my rod, and teach you some respect."
Suddenly, Iris's whole world snapped into sharp focus. How could she have been so stupid! Just because James was as dull as concrete and shallow as Petunia's lawn, didn't mean he couldn't and wouldn't use physical force to get his way!
He had lulled her into a false sense of security for the past two weeks: her Dursley-honed senses were used to categorizing everything that wasn't constant abuse as being at least somewhat safe. Despite Iris's best efforts, she had grown comfortable in her jail cell; had fallen into a routine without even realizing it. Hell, she had started talking about muds and blood traitors to Cassie in the library yesterday! She needed to remember where she was: a prison, nothing more, nothing less. A gentler prison than the Number Four, to be sure, but a prison none the less.
Something in her face must have showed her panic, because a poorly-hidden shine of victory entered James's eyes. The only one at the table who looked at all concerned was Cassie. She could have been mistaken for ghost who'd died witnessing something especially gruesome and revolting: her face was pale, and her wide eyes were darting back between her father and estranged sister in horror.
Slowly, almost angrily, Iris jerked her head up and down.
"Fine James, you win. I'll go."
"Excellent!" Miriam said, clapping her hands together, "I told you James: spare the rod, spoil the child! I'm so excited to finally show you the town I grew up in!"
As Miriam excitedly planned a nice traditional family outing, Iris slumped in her chair, defeated. She had tried her very best, but no one could have endured twelve years of Privet Drive without having a massive, glaring weak point, and it seemed James had found hers.
Damn Dursleys.
AN: Sorry guys, but updates are gonna be way less regular from now on. Please comment and let me know what you think!
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Title comes from Proverbs 30:17: "The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it." I thought it was appropriate.
Side note, I keep wanting to title Potter family chapters after verses from the book of James, for obvious reasons, but I can't because James is actually one of the cool books in the bible. Like, it's five whole chapters that can be summarized as "eat the rich", it's great. James 5:1-5 is a valid gender.
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Fic recommendation is Mistakes and Second Chances by lisbeth00. It's an absolutely incredible fem!Harry fic with not-annoying time travel, amazing unique magic, and a realistic f/f romance! The MC, Helene Potter, is incredibly written, and is one of the most realistic-feeling protagonists I've read in a long while. Definitely check it out!
