June 12th, 1991
Years had come and gone since Maribella had first been bitten by the werewolf, and with them, countless full moons had passed. The young girl slowly learned what it truly meant to be a beast. Even within her own family, she carried around a heavy discrimination and intolerance with her name. They treated her with caution, as if they were dealing with an undisciplined wild creature rather than their daughter, their sister. She was no longer Maribella , the adventurous girl, she was Maribella , the reckless witch-turned-werewolf, who had to be watched at all times, otherwise she'd do another crazy imprudent thing and injure those around her. Their actions were mostly done unconsciously, influenced subtly by the stigma placed on werewolves by the wizarding society, but nevertheless, hurtful. On the 12th, however, the entire house reeked of a newfound excitement, product of Maribella 's approaching birthday.
"It's tomorrow! Tomorrow! Tomorrow!" ten-year-old Maribella laughed happily, as she picked Marco up. Tesoro, the family kneazle protested loudly. Marco had been caressing his furry white belly, and Tesoro wasn't too ready for it to come to an end.
Tesoro had initially joined the Piccinni family a few months after Maribella had officially turned into a werewolf. Kneazles were known for their incontestable aggressiveness, unforgiving impetuous temperament, and unwavering loyalty, and at the time, Maribella 's mom had felt that this was exactly the type of pet their family needed. "He is here to protect us from everything he deems to be harmful," Mrs. Piccinni often said, and indeed he did. No one had been bitten by a werewolf since his arrival. Because of Tesoro's 'guard dog' status and tiger-like appearance, his relationship with Maribella in particular started off being quite rocky, but they eventually grew fond of one another.
They were so close that that evening when Tesoro hissed threateningly at Maribella after she took Marco away, she knew not to worry, and didn't even spare him a glance, laughing loudly and spinning Marco around.
"Tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow!" the three year old mimicked his sister's previous words, giggling gleefully at her actions.
"You have to promise to write me from Hogwarts," Anna, now eight years old, demanded, pulling at her sister's arm, forcing her to stop moving.
"Of course I will, Anna. In fact, I think I'll write you everyday!" Maribella happily exclaimed, grabbing her sister's hand and starting to jump and play around again.
The two eldest Piccinnis watched from afar as their children joyfully frolicked around. They shared a sour look, knowing how devastated their eldest daughter would be once they delivered the news. The following day would mark Maribella 's eleventh birthday, meaning that she would soon receive her Hogwarts letter and attend the school in Scotland. However, due to Maribella 's complication, they weren't sure the young girl would be accepted into the school. She was undeniably a witch, having displayed innumerable magical acts throughout her life, but was teaching her worth the risk she'd inevitably be putting her fellow peers in? They weren't so sure.
So a few hours before the clock struck midnight and it truly was Maribella 's birthday, her Mama and Papa pulled her aside to talk.
"Mari," Mr. Piccinni started quietly. "As you well know, tomorrow is your eleventh birthday, which means that you'll soon receive your Hogwarts letter."
"'Course I know, Papa," Maribella said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "We've been talking about it for ages."
"I know we have, sweetheart." He exhaled loudly, before continuing. "But instead of attending the school, wouldn't you rather stay here at home with me and Mama?"
Maribella raised her eyebrows quizzically. Hadn't he just been as excited as her only a few months before? He averted his eyes, looking rather tense considering that tomorrow would mark such an important date to them.
"You remember your Great Aunt Donatella, don't you? She was a very respected teacher back in her day, and I think I could get her to teach you a few of the basics," Mrs. Piccinni proposed nervously.
Maribella stared at her parents suspiciously, not understanding why they would ever reconsider sending her to Hogwarts.
"And of course there's also your… your problem, you know, Mari? We have a large stock of Wolfsbane good and ready to be consumed, and it'd be too troublesome for the headmaster to provide the exact quantity you'd need every month," her father finished awkwardly, unsure of how to proceed with the conversation.
Maribella wasn't buying any of what they had said. If her parents really weren't willing to let her go to the school, they would have told her ages ago. They probably wouldn't even have made it an option to their three children in the first place.
"Papa," she finally said. "What's really going on?"
Mr. Piccinni looked at his wife momentarily, before continuing hesitantly.
"It's just that…" he trailed off, not finding the proper words to express what he wanted to appropriately. "Well, sweetheart, there are no records of werewolves attending Hogwarts. At least no known records," Mr. Piccinni finally admitted. "Your mother and I are afraid you won't be accepted into the school."
Maribella blinked once. And twice. Then her tears started to fall. Of course she knew her lycanthropy would've been an additional challenge she'd have to face at Hogwarts, but she had always thought of it as more of an… annoyance. An ever-present massive annoyance that would greatly impact her days as a student, but one she could eventually learn to deal with, like she had at home. A manageable annoyance. Not once had it even grazed her mind the possibility that she wouldn't be able to go to the school. So understandably, she was crestfallen.
"Oh, Mari," Mrs. Piccinni said, as she hugged her daughter tightly. "I understand it's awful to think that you might not be going to Hogwarts, but I promise you'll have a wonderful time here with us. Off you go to bed now, tesoro, tomorrow is your birthday and we can't have you tired at your party."
Maribella felt so utterly miserable and alone, she was fleetingly reminded of her first night transforming into a werewolf. That night was mostly remembered as a blur, accompanied only by an involuntary shudder, as she remembered the fear she had felt standing out in the vineyards of the Grotta, a place that she had come to associate with danger. Regardless of how she felt, she kissed her parents goodnight and went to bed. The next morning was met with a mood of sorts, and by late noon, when it was clear no letters would be arriving, no one really felt like celebrating.
"Hogwarts letters don't always come on a child's eleventh birthday," Mr. Piccinni pointed out.
But Maribella , ever the pessimist, had already given up on the letter. The days passed slowly, with no sign that it would come. By the time the June full moon arrived, on the 27th, the Piccinni family had already started to prepare for what looked like Maribella 's permanent stay in the household. So naturally, when dawn rolled around the next morning, the young girl was woken up by loud pecks on the window. She sat on her bed, still groggy from sleep and hurting all over from yesterday's happenings. She yawned loudly, and slowly opened her eyes. Although she could see the first rays of light painting the sky, it was evidently early. Anna was still sleeping soundly, and Maribella never woke up before Anna did on the morning after full moons. Tesoro was probably the only one who was fully alert, as he sat by the window, staring at the family owl, which seemed normal enough. Except, her family didn't own an owl.
She clumsily scrambled off the bed, almost tripping over her blankets, as they too gracelessly fell off her bed. Reaching the window in record time, she threw it open and reached for the letter. She patted the owl's tawny head mindlessly, her pat's force increasing with her excitement, eventually turning into full on slaps. The owl screeched in pain, and moved to bite Maribella 's hand, but was scared off by Tesoro's warning hiss. Maribella , engrossed by the letter, took no notice. She was entranced by the Hogwarts emblem that graced the envelope. Her first thought upon sighting it was, It's a rejection letter. But did those even exist?
"Mama! Papa!" she yelled excitedly, running towards her room's door, this time promptly tripping and falling on the ground.
"Maribella ? What-", Anna, recently awakened by the loud shrieks coming from both the owl and her sister, mumbled slowly, still groggy from sleep.
"I got it! I got it, Anna, I got the letter!" Maribella interrupted, picking herself up from the ground, and shoving the letter on her sister's face. She beamed at her sister. Poor Anna was too drowsy to process what had just happened, so Maribella turned around, skipping down the hall just as her parents came out of their room.
"Maribella, go back to bed. It's still early," Mr. Piccinni said as the girl approached.
"Papa, I got my letter! I got my Hogwarts letter!" Maribella announced, too happy to try and contain her enthusiasm.
Her parents beamed at her, somnolence instantly vanishing from their eyes.
"You did? That's wonderful, honey," Mr. Piccinni smiled at his daughter.
"Let me see it, Mari," Mrs. Piccinni opened the envelope and took the letter out. "My, they are getting demanding," she said as she scanned the supply list. "Crystal phials? Those cost almost eight galleons, we're getting glass ones. What is an eleven year old going to do with- Oh look Ale, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them! We have an autographed copy, Mari, you can bring it along with you," Mrs. Piccinni said it all in one breath, almost as excited as Maribella .
"Can we go to Diagon Alley today?" Maribella asked,standing on the tip of her toes, trying to read the letter over her mother's shoulders.
"Well, I don't see why not, we don't have anything else planned," Mr. Piccinni answered, chuckling quietly at Maribella 's antics.
Maribella cheered loudly, her joyous laughter echoing through the house and filling the halls, feeling happier than she had in days, maybe even months, and she started to get ready to begin another chapter of her tumultuous life.
Maribella 's lasts few months with her family were far from fun. They weren't horrible, per say, but just so terribly boring. After the Diagon Alley trip, Maribella all but absorbed her school books, reading them well into the night. She looked forward the most to Care for Magical Creatures, eager to show off her signed book and advanced knowledge on the subject. Her wand was kept by her parents for safety, hidden among a few of their most useless trinkets, and as soon as Maribella found where it was placed, she yearned to take it out of its case and use it (which she did. Quite a few times, actually.) She had spent a great part of her childhood longing to do magic, and now she had a wand! A real wooden wand, that could cast the most peculiar of spells if she wanted it to, and she refused to spend another moment of her life without it. (It was only when her parents caught her attempting to levitate Marco that she stopped. She did hate disappointing them). She even played around with her cauldron, making mock potions with Marco and Anna. No matter how much fun she had at home, she knew it would all be ten times better at the school. If only summer wouldn't drag on for so long.
When September 1st finally arrived, Maribella was ecstatic. She was ready to go, robes on and kneazle under her arm, before her parents even awoke. When they did, they made her change into normal Muggle clothes and to put Tesoro down, as he unfortunately had to stay. Then, they sat down to eat breakfast.
"Why, will you look at this, Fatima. Someone tried to rob a vault at Gringotts," Mr. Piccinni commented, casually flipping through the Daily Prophet as he ate a buttered piece of toast.
The nerve of them, eating so calmly when we are clearly late, Maribella thought indignantly, as the kitchen clock cuckooed to signalize it was officially eight-thirty in the morning. Maribella gasped, as she slowly started to panic. The train would leave in exactly two hours and thirty minutes! Why, her parents were always reprimanding her about her impulsive personality, and now that she was trying to be cautious, they couldn't care less! Didn't they understand that she needed to get to the station early, just for insurance? She almost screamed in frustration when her siblings woke a good twenty minutes later.
The Piccinnis only arrived at the station two hours later. Maribella bounced up and down, anxious to get to Platform 9 ¾ as quickly as she could. She soon realized her family wouldn't be cooperating any time soon, as they walked slowly, taking their time to slowly examine every Muggle souvenir they came across, fully fascinated by non-magical London. She decided to take matters into her own hands.
"Come on!" Maribella urged, exasperated, and she grabbed Giovanna's hand and took off running towards Platform 9. She expertly dodged the passersby, with a level of agility she herself didn't recognize. Unfortunately for the two sisters, Anna wasn't as skilled, and couldn't keep up with Maribella 's panic-induced pace, and they ended up tripping and crashing onto a small plump woman, who stood nearby their destination.
"Sorry Ms.," Anna squeaked, flustered. She only got a quick glimpse of the woman's red-headed family, before Maribella started sprinting towards the dividing barrier between platform nine and ten, and Anna dutifully followed.
"Now, what's the platform's number?" Anna heard the woman ask, before she closed her eyes and disappeared through Platform 9 and 10.
A few seconds later, when Giovanna felt it was safe to once again open her eyes, she was met by the sight of a large scarlet train, caked by a thick layer of steam, and her own sister, standing under the plastic Hogwarts Express sign, mesmerized by the sight of the vehicle. The two girls were standing side by side admiring the train, when their parents arrived.
"Mari," Mr. Piccinni started, clearly out of breath. "Don't you ever do that again. You gave your mama and I quite a fright."
"You could've gotten lost, Maribella ," her mother said sternly, panting slightly and leaning on the trolley she was pushing.
"Sorry," Maribella replied, her tone light, not taking her eyes off the red machine. Mrs. Piccinni sent her a warning look, and she was quick to explain herself. "I'm sorry, Mama. I got excited, that's all," and she bounced on the balls of her feet, fidgeting with the edge of her shirt.
That eased a bit of the tension off her parents' shoulders. They smiled slightly at their eldest daughter and pulled her into a hug.
"I can't believe you're already going to Hogwarts, Mari," her Papa said.
"We'll miss you so much, tesoro," her mama completed. Even Giovanna joined in on the hug. Maribella graciously received the hugs and kisses, but pushed her family away as soon as she felt it would be acceptable to, before they all turned into a weeping blob, composed only of tears and snot. Nasty.
"I'll help you onto the train, Mari," Mr. Piccinni, perhaps being the most emotional there present, claimed, taking her hand and her trunk each in one hand and walking towards the Hogwarts Express.
"Bye Mama! Bye Gio! What- yes, I'll write you loads, Anna, we've talked about that- Love you too, Mama, send Marco my kisses," Maribella shouted over her shoulder, waving mother and sister goodbye one last time, before letting herself be dragged away by her father.
Together, the two managed to haul Maribella 's heavy trunk up on the train.
"I'll miss you, sweetheart," Mr. Piccinni sniffed.
"I'll miss you too, Papa," Maribella said. Planting a sloppy kiss on his cheek, she hopped on the train just as a loud whistle went off. The train was departing, and as it started to move, Maribella hobbled down the corridor with great difficulty, trying to find a compartment to spend the next few hours in.
So far, the Hogwarts experience was shaping out to be exactly what Maribella had expected. She found an empty carriage and she loved the soft screech the door made as she slid it open. She plopped down on the bench, and she loved how the wood felt under her fingertips. She looked out the window, and she loved how the British scenery she was accustomed with was slowly mingling together with the Scottish one, as they left England. She heard the laughter, the jubilant squeals that hovered in the air as students found their friends. She loved how-
"Excuse me, sorry," a voice interrupted her thoughts. She looked up, startled, to find a bushy-haired girl staring up at her. "Have you seen a toad? A boy in my compartment lost his," Maribella noticed that the girl's mouth didn't fully close over her abnormally large teeth, but she chose not to comment on it. That wouldn't be wise, especially considering that the girl looked to be around Maribella 's age, and could be a potential friend.
"I haven't, sorry," Maribella said instead, shaking her head. The girl sighed quietly, and moved to close the door. "I could help you look, if you'd like."
The girl nodded and walked out of the compartment. Maribella leapt to her feet, proud of herself. She hadn't even arrived at the school yet, and here she was, already socializing.
"You go further down the train, and I'll look for it in the next few compartments," the girl instructed. "I'm Hermione, by the way," she decided to add as an afterthought.
"I'm Maribella , nice to meet you," and Maribella set off down the hall. She checked the compartments with friendly-looking people in them. Finally, she stopped in front of one containing only two young boys. Maribella knocked softly, trying to make a good first impression, before letting herself in.
"Have you guys seen a toad? My, um, friend lost his," Maribella asked when she came in.
"We've already told him we haven't," the one seating nearest to her, a redheaded lanky boy, huffed. A dark grey rat snoozed on his lap, twitching slightly. The boy held his wand in one hand.
"Are you doing magic?" Maribella asked, once she noticed it. "I tried some at home on my younger brother, but my Mama and Papa caught me before I could manage to do it. It was quite frustrating," she rambled on. "'Course, I don't think it would've worked anyways, levitating charms are quite complicated." Maribella was nervous. She hadn't felt nervous when talking to Hermione, but maybe that was because they had barely talked. She felt much calmer, though, when the two boys chuckled at her story. "Mind if I sit with you guys for a bit?" her voice trembled when she asked, but the boy nodded and she sat down beside him.
"I'm Ron," the red-haired boy introduced himself, waving his wand-hand.
"I'm Maribella ," she said back. "But you can call me Mari, if you'd like," the nickname made her feel more at home.
"I'm Harry. Harry Potter," the other boy said. The name seemed familiar, as did his messy hair and green eyes, but Maribella couldn't quite place him anywhere.
"Nice to meet you, Harry Potter," she finally said. Ron stared at her expectantly, apparently waiting for her to say something else.
"Don't you know who he is?" Ron blurted out a few second later, after she showed no signs of recognition. "Wait, hold on, are you muggleborn?" Maribella shook her head. "Didn't think so, you don't look lost enough- how do you not know who Harry Potter is, then?"
Harry Potter himself looked completely embarrassed.
"I just had a busier childhood, I guess," Maribella answered quietly. Her family didn't have time for 'celebrities', not when they had so many problems to sort out.
"Right, but-"
The compartment's door suddenly slid open. Hermione was back.
"Has anyone seen a toad- oh hi Maribella , you've checked this one, then," she said. Supposedly feeling more comfortable by the presence of a friendly face, she moved into the compartment and sat across from Ron, who looked quite taken aback by her sudden entrance.
"Are you doing magic? Let's see it then," Hermione bossed, spotting Ron's wand. Maribella had already forgotten about it, but was intrigued, as was Harry.
"Er, actually we- oh, all right." Ron cleared his throat, and turned to the sleeping animal on his lap. "Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, Turn this stupid, fat rat yellow." He waved his wand, but nothing happened. The rat stayed gray and fast asleep.
"Are you sure that's a real spell?" said Hermione. "Well, it's not very good, is it? I've tried a few simple spells just for practice and it's all worked for me. I've learned all our course books by heart, of course, I just hope it will be enough- I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?"
Maribella had read all her course books at home as well, but after talking to Hermione she suddenly felt unprepared for the school year.
"Harry Potter," Harry answered.
"Are you really?" said Hermione. "I know all about you, of course- I got a few extra books. for background reading, and you're in Modern Magical History and The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century."
Oh. Guess Harry was a lot more important than he and Ron had let on.
"Am I?" said Harry, looking slightly dazed. So maybe he just… didn't know?
"You didn't know, Harry?" Maribella voiced her uncertainty. It seemed odd to her. How could this wizard boy, apparently very very well known, be unaware of his own fame?
"Goodness, I'd have found out everything I could if it was me," said Hermione. She then looked at Ron, scrunching her nose up slightly. "And you are…?"
"I'm Ron Weasley," Ron muttered.
"Pleasure," Hermione gave him a slight nod. "Anyway, I'd better carry on looking for Neville's toad, if you won't, Maribella . You lot had better change, though, I expect we'll be there soon." And she left, leaving Maribella staring after her, bewildered.
A few seconds passed, and then the three of them burst out laughing.
"Whatever house I'm in, I hope she's not in it," said Ron. He threw his wand into his trunk.
"She isn't that bad, Ron," Maribella defended the girl, even though she secretly thought that yes, Hermione was that bad. "Anyway, she's right about something, we should be getting at Hogwarts soon. I better go change," she stood up as she said that. "I'll be right back."
She went back to the carriage her trunk was in. Hastily throwing it open, she found her school uniform and hurried to the bathroom where she could change. Once she was finished, she scurried back to where her new friends were sitting, eager to be with them. Maybe because the train was moving too quickly for her to keep up with, or maybe because she was too distracted to watch where she really was going, but a few seconds later, Maribella found her cheek pressed against the floor. She had crashed into someone, and in the process, she had fallen on her face.
"Sorry," she mumbled, rubbing her cheek as she stood again.
"Watch where you're going," the blonde boy she had bumped into snapped. He glared at her, then at his friends, two giant baboons who looked as lost as a nun on a honeymoon.
"I said I was sorry," Maribella said, irritated, but the boy wasn't listening. He was already sulking away with his two minions. Maribella instantly disliked him. Rolling her eyes, she continued making her way down the train, until she reached Ron's compartment. Hermione was just leaving when she arrived.
"I wouldn't go in there if I were you. They made me leave because they are about to change," the girl said, as Maribella approached. Maribella had a feeling they hadn't only made her leave because they were changing clothes.
"Thanks," she replied, even though she didn't feel thankful at all. She knew she was being rude, but at the moment she didn't care. Hermione just gave her a strange look, then left. Maribella rested her head against the cool door, waiting for the two boys to change. She stayed there for a few minutes, until she felt they had had enough time to put their clothes on, and opened the door.
"What now- oh, hey Mari," Ron muttered when she came in.
"Don't mind him," said Harry. "He's just upset," and then Harry began telling her what had had happened before Maribella came in. She was surprised to hear that the same rude boy, named Malfoy, who she had talked to earlier had bothered her new friends as well.
"I bumped into him on my way here. Seemed like a right brat," she said.
"He is. That's what his family is known for," Ron said, finally joining the conversation. "You should've seen Scabbers, though," at that, he gestured to his rat. "A fighter, this one is. They were about to eat our food, but he didn't let them."
Maribella glanced at rat's sleeping form. At that moment, he really didn't seem like much of a nuisance. But she shrugged, accepting what Ron had said. Mostly because she didn't want to anger him any further.
"Sorry, Mari, forgot to ask. Would you like to have a chocolate frog?" Harry asked.
"Oh. Yeah, sure," Maribella grabbed one, staring at it uncertainly. "You know my mother studies these," she held the frog up so the boys could see. "Magical creatures, I mean. She's a magizoologist."
"What's that?" Harry asked, looking genuinely interested.
"Magizoology is the branch of biology that focuses on the structure, function, behaviour, and evolution of animals," Maribella answered. "She studies magical creatures."
"Oh. So kind of like a zoologist," Harry said.
"What?" Maribella asked, confused. That Harry Potter boy sure was a strange one. "No, like a magizoologist."
"Yes, but you see, zoologists- Oh, nevermind," Sensing his two companions' confusion, Harry was quick to change the topic. "Tell me more about magizoology."
"I told you about Charlie, my older brother, didn't I, Harry?" said Ron. "Well, he studies dragons. That's magizoology. I reckon your mum doesn't study these, though," Ron gestured towards the chocolate frogs. "They're chocolate."
Maribella glanced at the redhead and grinned, "I reckon you're right," and she put the entire frog in her mouth, chewing slowly, just as a voice suddenly echoed "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately."
Hogwarts at last.
A/N: Second chapter is up and Maribella is at Hogwarts! We finally got to meet some of our favorite original characters as well. Let me know what you think.