Chapter 3
Periwinkle awoke in her dorm, she slowly sat up rubbing her eyes glancing around the room at the other three girls in their beds they were all still asleep. She quietly got up and once she was ready for the day. She went to the Great Hall for breakfast, since it was still early in the morning there were very few students up. She sat down at the Slytherin table to eat and as she was fixing her plate, she glanced up seeing Holly walking in with Draco following behind her it was obvious to Periwinkle that he had been trying to talk to her but Holly was ignoring him. They parted ways at the entrance going to their dedicated house tables. Draco spotted Periwinkle and sat across from her, "I thought you were never going to associate yourself with Holly?" Periwinkle asked him.
"I was not."
She eyed him, "Yeah ok. I know my sister and you are a terrible liar."
"And you are annoying."
She made a fake gasp, "How rude! I am deeply offended by this comment. I will have to inform my mother about this."
"You are weird," he chuckled fixing his plate.
"I will accept that compliment," she laughed taking a bite of her bagel, "Yeah…I prefer New York City bagels."
He rolled his eyes, "Ready for your classes?"
"No, who is ever ready to learn."
"Ravenclaws and Granger."
She shook her head, "Hallie is a Ravenclaw and hates learning so do not stereotype. Plus, Holly loves to learn, she was always in the library when we went to Ilvermorny."
He groaned, "Great. I like a bookworm."
"Ha! You admitted it!"
"Shut up!" he hissed
She laughed taking out her schedule, "I got Defense Against the Dark Arts first. That should be interesting."
"If you do not mind the creepy professor then sure."
"He is a bit creepy."
"A bit? Very creepy."
After breakfast was over, she was headed to Defense Against the Dark Arts when she was about to round a corner when overheard her mom speaking with Professor Snape just, she decided to stop and eavesdrop on their conversation. "Severus, will you leave me alone. I came to you for a potion not for you to start bringing up the past. You are sixteen years too late to be worrying about me anymore."
"You are refusing to answer my question. I asked you then and now."
Cassandra eyed him coldly, "What do you want to hear? It makes no difference. You would have never been there. I found someone who would never abandon me."
"Tell me the truth," he hissed, "Is Periwinkle mine?"
She groaned, "Yes! Fine, there she is yours. Are you happy? You will never be a father to her. My husband is the father to her and all my children. He is more of a man than you will ever be. He stepped up to help me raise three young girls and you abandoned me before I even had the chance to tell you about her."
"She is fifteen now. Let her decided if she wants me in her life. Do not become your father, Cassandra."
"Excuse you! I will never become that evil man who abused me just because I chose a different viewpoint than him and the rest of my family. I was not going to become a death eater…unlike some." Periwinkle was about to take this moment to walk away when Mad-Eye Moody approached her mom and Professor Snape, "Good morning, Mad-Eye," Cassandra said kindly acting as if she was not just in an argument with Snape.
Mad-Eye looked at the two, "Everything alright?"
"Oh, yes. We were just discussing my eldest daughter, Periwinkle," Cassandra put a strong emphasis on the word my as she looked at Snape.
"Did she cause trouble before her first day? If so just ask her yourself," his fake eye glancing towards the corner that Periwinkle hid behind.
Cassandra and Snape both looked at the corner, "Periwinkle Elizabeth?"
She stepped out, "Good morning, mom," she tried to act completely normal.
"Why were you eavesdropping?"
"Me? Eavesdrop? Mother, why would I do such a thing. I was simply heading to class with Professor Mad-Eye."
Cassandra eyed her, "I am not stupid, Peri. I have a meeting and will deal with you later," she informed her then proceeded to walk away from them.
Periwinkle looked at Snape, "I will see you in potions after lunch, Professor."
"Indeed," he said, "Perhaps come a bit earlier. I would like to…test your knowledge. I am unaware of how they teach in America."
She nodded, "Certainly. I would like to make sure I am on the same level as my fellow students." Snape gave a small nod then she proceeded to head towards the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. She was the first in the classroom and took a seat as Moody came into the room behind her, his cane echoing as he walked.
"Young lady," he said once he reached the front of the classroom and turned to face her.
Periwinkle had taken out some parchment, quill, and ink as well as her book to prepare for class, "Yes?" she asked a bit confused.
"What do you know about the unforgivable curses?"
"They are primarily in the past by Lord Voldemort and his followers as a form of torture or to murder those that stood in their way."
"You speak his name?" he seemed surprised by this but sounded oddly pleased at the same time.
"It is just a name. It only gives people fear of the name because we let it. If we do not let it develop fear then we have nothing to fear," she said not even looking up from the paper she was writing on, "As for the unforgivable curses there are three that are considered to be very heavily punished by wizarding law. They are the Imperius Curse which allows the person casting it to have total control. This curse can be fought, it takes an incredibly strong person to fight it."
Mad-Eye continued eyeing her, she glanced up at him not being phased at all by their conversation as they waited for the other students to arrive, "Is that the only one you know?"
"I know them all. Would you like me to tell you the other two?"
The classroom door opened and students started coming in chattering, but instantly went quiet after noticing Mad-Eye standing at the front of the classroom watching them enter. Once they were seated, he looked back at Periwinkle, "Save it for the lesson."
She nodded as the other students came in. In the fifth year Defense Against the Dark Arts class Slytherins and Ravenclaws had class, the students glanced at her as they entered then started gossiping with one another. She looked down at her book trying to look like this did not bother her but it did. Just because she was a Slytherin did not mean she was some cruel person like the rest of her house was considered to be. As she flipped the pages of her book footsteps approached her, "Is this seat taken?" a girl's voice asked.
She looked up and saw a Ravenclaw girl, "Are you asking me?"
The girl laughed, "Yes. Is the seat taken?"
"Um…no. Please sit," she offered her the seat.
The girl sat next to her, "Cho Chang," she offered Periwinkle her hand to shake.
She looked at the hand then Cho, "Peri King."
"Mrs. Banks' daughter, right?"
"That is me."
Cho looked at her more, "You do not look like your mother. No offense, but you do not resemble her."
"I know. I have been told I resemble my father more…I do not know who he is. I have my suspicions but it has never been fully confirmed for me."
Cho was going to speak, but Mad-Eye started speaking to the class, "Put your books away," he growled, "you will not be needing those. We will not be using books this year." The students looked at each other confused but put away the books as they were told. "Professor Lupin left a letter to me informing me on what he taught all of you last year and I must say you are all very much behind…behind on curses that is."
"Curses?" Cho questioned in a whisper to Periwinkle.
"Unforgivable curses…" she looked at Moody then back at Cho, "he was asking me about them when I came in."
Moody's magical turned to them and stared them down; this made Cho tense up but it did not bother Periwinkle she just stared back at him, "Ladies would you like to share your conversation with the rest of the class."
Cho shook her head looking down at her quill and parchment paper, "The curses is what we were discussing," Periwinkle spoke not giving a care in the world what happened.
"Class this is Periwinkle King, before the rest of you arrived, I was quizzing Ms. King on her knowledge of these curses and she proved to be quite intelligent. Care to tell us the curses?"
"Certainly," she stood up to speak.
Moody glanced at a jar that sat upon his desk and took a spider out, "Actually show us." Periwinkle looked at the spider then Moody, she slowly approached the front of the classroom, "Tell the class about each curse then demonstrate it on the spiders."
She looked at the spider sitting on the desk then her fellow students who watched her closely, the Slytherins seemed very interested in her and the Ravenclaws seemed to be more scared of her since she was very willing to perform these curses. "This first curse is the Imperius Curse which allows the person casting it to have total control. This curse can be fought, it takes an incredibly strong person to fight it," she took her wand out of her cloak and pointed it at the spider, "Imperio!"
The spider leaped from the table and hung by a piece of web and began to swing back and forth as if it were part of a trapeze. The legs were stretched rigidly, then did a backflip which broke the thread and landed on the floor in front of her and Moody, where it then began to do summersaults in a circle. Periwinkle placed the spider back on the desk, "I had total control of the spider."
"Another?" Moody told her.
"I know more but perhaps we should ask the others if they know any more."
He groaned a little then looked at the rest of the class, "You!" he demanded at a Ravenclaw boy, "Tell me another."
"Me?" he squeaked
"Yes! Tell me another curse," Moody banged his cane on the ground making the class jump.
The boy stood shaking, "Cruciatus curse."
Moody nodded, "Sit," the boy quickly sat down and he looked at Periwinkle, "Define and show."
"The Cruciatus curse is also known as the torture curse. When used correctly the curse will cause intense, excruciating pain on its victim."
Moody took another spider out of the jar, "This one needs to be bigger," he pointed his wand at it, "Engorgio!"
The spider became larger than a tarantula, "Begin."
She pointed her wand at the spider, "Crucio!"
Immediately the spider's legs bent into itself; it rolled over and began to appear as if it were having a seizure. Everything in the room was silent including the spider; if the spider could make a noise of any kind Periwinkle was positive that it would be screaming in pain. She removed her wand from the spider after noticing some of the students appearing to be very pale coloring as if this was making them sick. "Professor, I think we should stop the lesson. It appears to be making some of the students uncomfortable."
Moody looked at the students who watched the spider who was beginning to relax but still twitching. He looked at the spider as well, "Reducio," he muttered and the spider shrunk back to its normal size then was placed back in the jar. "Pain occurs with this curse. You do not need a knife to perform any kind of torture if you know how to properly perform the Cruciatus curse…there was a time when it was once very popular…now Ms. King what is the final curse?"
Periwinkle looked towards Moody, "Avada Kedavra," she spoke softly knowing she was about to have to perform the Killing Curse on one of the spiders in the jar.
"Yes…the last curse and the worst of them all," he reached into the jar and pulled a clearly very scared spider who was placed on the desk; the spider tried to run away, "Quick now perform the curse."
Periwinkle looked at the spider and raised her wand to it, "Avada Kedavra."
A blinding flash of green light and a rushing sound as if an invisible something rushed the air and instantly the spider rolled onto its back, it was unmarked but clearly dead. Periwinkle stared at the spider that name laid dead in front of her, she looked at her wand still pointed directly at it she quickly stuffed the wand in her cloak. A hand was placed upon her shoulder, "Thank you, Ms. King. Back to your seat now," Moody told her.
She gave a nod and walked back to her seat next to Cho; as she walked, she heard primarily the Ravenclaw students holding back cries while the Slytherins and some Ravenclaws gossiped with one another. She took her seat glancing up at the front as Moody brushed the now dead spider onto the floor, "I cannot believe you actually did that."
She looked at Cho, "Honestly neither can I. I did not want to, but this professor makes me nervous. I did not feel I could say no."
Cho looked at Moody then back at Periwinkle, "Understandable, but wait till you meet Professor Snape. He is just as terrifying."
"I've already met him…my mother knew him. Apparently, they were classmates and he is the head of my house."
"Your mother knew Professor Snape?"
"Indeed. I do not believe they ended on good terms though."
Moody continued his class, but Periwinkle had gone into her own world.
By the time class ended everyone left, Cho offered to wait but she said no and sent her off with her friends. She started gathering her things as a clanking noise approached her, "You did well today…especially for a witch as young as you. You are very gifted."
She looked up at him, "Thank you."
He eyed her, "That last one seemed to really get to you."
"That curse killed my sisters' parents."
"Sisters? Your mother's husband Mr. Robert Banks is still alive correct?"
She nodded, "Yes, but my adopted sisters lost their parents that way. Hallie and Holly Porter; they are fourth years in Gryffindor and Ravenclaw."
"Ah…" he seemed to be very interested in this.
Periwinkle looked at a clock placed on the wall, "I should go before I am late for my next class."
"Certainly. Good day, Periwinkle."
She gathered the final bits of her things and put her shoulder bag over her shoulder then left the room.