Lenore's dorm room was shared with three other girls, Natasha Lora Fry, Mara Allyson Snider and April Schneider. So far as Lenore could tell, they were all in the same year as she was and possibly some of the same classes. They also seemed down to earth and willing to lend her a hand if and when it was needed, although Mara seemed quieter than the other girls and tended to stay out of the way. Immediately the girls launched into a discussion about the holidays and knowing that she would have nothing cheerful to add if asked, Lenore sneaked over to her trunk to unpack.
Jacob was laying upside down on the pillow of her bed, his tail resting up right on the head board and his feet kicking at the air every few minutes. Lenore flipped open the lid of her trunk, pulled out a royal blue blanket from the bottom and tossed it over Jacob, who simply twitched and rolled on to his belly; it was funny considering he was covered in the blanket and just looked like a lump.
"Lenore, what did you do this summer?" Inquired April.
Without turning to face her new dorm mates, she replied, "Nothing. I just watched television and hung out around the City."
"Television? Isn't that a muggle invention?" Mara screwed up her nose and Lenore couldn't tell if she was confused or disgusted.
"Yeah. My adoptive Dad is a muggle and my adoptive mother is a witch. So they just live outside London."
"You're adopted?!" Apparently this was more shocking than having a television.
"My mother and father both died when I was two."
There was silence.
"I'm sorry. I didn't know." Mara whispered apologetically.
"It's nothing. Really. I'm used to it by now." Lenore turned to the three girls and smiled.
Her smile was met with reluctant and sympathetic nods; she was more than happy when they returned to conversation, as if everything they had said didn't happen.
She turned her back on them, closed her eyes tight and pinched the bridge of her nose. She could feel a definite head ache coming on. Sighing, Lenore took her pyjamas, a pair of long black sweats and a long sleeved Twisted Kittens t-shirt, and announced she was leaving to take a quick shower.
"You know where they are okay?" asked April.
Lenore nodded, "I'm sure I'll find them."
Without waiting for a reply, she hastily left.
*******
The shower room was as Lenore expected, dank, dark and depressing. The walls were made of rich stone, much like the rest of the Slythern dungeon; however the actual showers were of white, sparkling marble and silver chrome and were lined up, five in a row. There was a large stone cylinder, wash basins covering it and the walls on either side were covered in mirrors. Silver out lined the glass and was engraved with snakes. It was beautiful in a mysterious, if not quite sinister, way. In the centre of the large sink area was a circular column, large enough to fit twenty girls around it; it was low enough for its black marble top to be used as a bench.
Lenore stared at her reflection in the darkness; Light was a privilege, not a necessity. Her skin was paler in the gloom, like a sparkling pearl, her eyes seemed to dance with an inner flame, the mist within the purple swayed and swirled. She sighed and turned away from the mirror, but the reflection remained, its head cocked sideways. Eerie black mist, in the shape of wings, extended behind the reflection, its ears pointed at the tips and its teeth were like needles. Its mouth was pulled into an impish grin and its eyes twinkled with glee. Lenore glanced over her shoulder and shot it a dark look, it disappeared immediately.
Sighing, she stepped onto the marble of the shower room, locked herself into one of the narrow stalls and hung her towel safely away from the water. She stripped down and hung her clothes up safely as well.
The water was ice cold when she first turned on the shower. The arctic droplets were unpleasant but not unwelcome and Lenore submerged her head in the liquid without a second thought. Goosebumps rose on her skin, which was pearl white in the gloom. She turned her nose up towards the hose and run her fingers through her cropped hair. It felt like being trapped in a block of ice, her thoughts were numbed and all her concentration went into shivering to stay warm.
She sat on the seal brown top of the centre bench with her knees drew up under her chin. A fluffy white towel was wrapped around her torso. The face staring at her was, sadly, her own. Not the human mask that she wore in public, but the beautiful, demonic harlot that she hid underneath. The reflection grinned at her, its amethyst eyes wide with glee. The scars were less prominent in the mirror than on her human body; they were a shade of snowy pink, the worst of them rose above the skin. The track marks around her wrists and elbows were swollen even though it had been two days since her last she stared at herself and contrasted the difference, the pain was almost overwhelming. She hated the person in the mirror just as much as she hated the person who was looking at it. Lenore covered her eyes with her porcelain hands and wept.
"Why do you cry?" the voice was almost musical, like chiming bells.
Lenore lifted her head to look upon the intruder. She gasped and jumped from the bench. The reflection in the mirror had manifested into more than just a reflection. Her long black hair, the hair Lenore was naturally born with, cloaked her naked body, her skin was so perfect and smooth and dark venomous eyes watched solemnly. Lenore gripped the white towel tighter around her human body and moved slowly away.
"How? How can you be here? You're me!" Lenore chocked.
"There's enough magic in this place for me to manifest myself. Don't fret though, only you can see me." Her eyes suddenly darkened, "but I'll always be in your reflection. That'll be a bit of an inconvenience if you ever want to go swimming with your buddies."
Lenore huffed, "That's not the only inconvenience," she gestured to her scars, "see what you've done to me?"
"You can't accept yourself? How is that my doing? I am you, the real you, you would be happy if you just let me out." The reflection lowered her head.
"Go!" Lenore roared, suddenly full of anger, "Leave me alone. I can't deal with you right now!" she was shaking, tears still running down her cheeks.
The reflection simply frowned and disappeared with a crack. Lenore sunk to the floor, her head in her hands and the towel around her ankles.
**************
The next morning, Lenore waited for Draco in the common room. She ran her fingers through her hair, now hanging in long ringlets and coloured deep plum. A mermaid swam by one of the high aquatic windows, gave her a wave and large smile. Lenore waved back. The mermaid swam away.
At that moment Draco thundered down the stairs of the boy's dorm, he was accompanied by a sandy haired boy, his skin was white as porcelain and he was graceful on his feet. They laughed with each other at some unheard joke.
"Lenore!," Draco beamed, "I'm glad you waited. Nice hair."
She smiled awkwardly, "I don't really know where I'm going."
The boy behind Draco chuckled and nodded his head, "It doesn't get any easier,"
Lenore smiled at him briefly.
"Oh. My apologises, this is Felix Crowe." Draco gestured towards the boy, "Felix, this is Lenore Requiem. It's her first year here."
Instead of shaking her hand, Felix launched forward and bundled her into a bear hug. Lenore gasped as he squeezed her ribs and she glanced helplessly over Felix's shoulder to Draco, who grinned amusingly?
"Um…..Hi." Lenore coughed.
"Oh gee!" Felix released her and jumped back, "Did I hurt you?"
Lenore rubbed her ribs flexed her arms and stood up as straight as possible. She smiled.
"No. No. I'm fine. I just don't get much physical affection. Such, as that."
"Get used to it. He does that a lot." Draco said, as he slung an arm around Lenore's small shoulders, "You'll be feelin' the love all day long."
Draco directed her to the exit, Felix followed.
They stepped into the icy dungeon corridor, the lights were a dull spark of orange and the walls were soaked with dew. With Draco's arm still draped round her small shoulders, and Felix humming gleefully behind her, Lenore walked towards the staircase which lead up to the school.
She was puzzled at how easy it was to be around Draco and Felix after only knowing them for a short time, in Felix's case, no more than a few seconds. Lenore figured that this year wouldn't be as hard as she had first though, all she had to do was survive this year and the next, then she could leave. Couldn't be all that bad. Better than home.
"What's your first glass?" Felix asked as they made it to the corridor above.
Lenore searched in her robes until she found her timetable, folded neatly in one of the inside pockets. She studied the 'Wednesday' section of the piece of paper.
"I think I have transfiguration. "She answered.
"Awesome, so am I." Felix smiled.
Draco nodded, "Me too."
"That means we have McGonagall." Felix cringed, "You know how she wants my guts for garters!"
The turned corners into a brightly lit corridor, its windows open wide to the fresh autumn air outside. The din of voices became apparent as they entered through the large hall doors. Students were sitting here and there along their house tables.
"That was last year." Draco chose a seat near the centre of the Slythern table, Lenore sat beside him and Felix sat across, "She's an old bird. She might have forgotten by now."
"Key word being might." Felix muttered.
Lenore reached forward for a piece of tuff wheaten bread and a bowl. She filled half way with cornflakes and poured herself black coffee into a large mug. Felix piled his plate with toast, sausage and bacon while Draco settled for an apple.
They spoke little as they ate only general questions and answers. Other students spoke briefly to Felix, some spoke to Draco and non spoke to Lenore. Most just glanced at her. She felt as if she were exposed, a prize cow on show to all.
Draco looked at his leather wrist watch, "We have ten minutes to get to transfiguration." He turned to Lenore, "Do you need to borrow notes or anything? I have a bunch of stuff from the last few years."
"No thanks. I have notes of my own. I did lots of studying at home since I was eleven and meant to go to school. Figured I might as well be prepared if the opportunity rose."
"O – kay." Felix said slowly, "I don't mean no offense of nothing but your edging away from new-girl to new-weird-girl."
She laughed, "No offence taken."
Lenore lowered her head and stared into her empty cornflakes bowl. There were more things than home study that made her weird, some things she didn't want to be reminded of and some that she could never forget. Draco draped an arm around her shoulders after a few moments silence, but no further comments were made. She was surprised that they understood her sudden loss of speech to mean something deeper, however somehow they had.
Felix was the first to stand up, followed by Draco and then Lenore.
*********
Transfiguration had been nothing exciting. They had learnt nothing new, all they had done was receive a lecture on the importance of their next major examinations; NEWTS. She had received yet another speech in History of magic from Professor Binns but it became apparent very quickly that no one actually listened; they instead chose to make paper hippogriffs and float them across the classroom. Binns didn't as much as flinch.
Lenore stared out the window, watching the clouds and the birds. She tried to distance herself from the classroom, the smell of teenage hormones and O-zone from the professor was making her feel ill, instead she imagined how it must feel to be free. Free like a bird.
Something hit her on the back of the head. She swung round to see a gabble of Hufflepuff's laughing at her as she patted her hair.
"You should seriously consider getting some new contacts. Or at least a decent hair cut." Sneered a blonde girl, her shirt so tight around her breast they could burst out at any moment.
Lenore just turned back round without retorting. She twirled a strand of her hair around one finger.
"What a freak."
"I hear she was agoraphobic, which is why she didn't come to school in first year."
Wrong.
"I hear she was in an asylum."
She should be in an asylum, but no.
"No way. She's probably some sort of suicide risk or something."
The bell rang and Lenore was the first one out the door.