A/N: Hey guys! This chapter introduces my original character. Also I realized I forgot to put a disclaimer on the last chapter, so (not that it really needs saying, but) I DON'T OWN SNAPE. Sadly. Happy reading, and thanks for any and all reviews, faves, etc! :D
2. First Day of Sun
Isadora Starbuck noticed Severus as she came through the portal to Platform 9 ¾, watching him stare off down to some unknown distraction, his trunk and owl sitting next to him on the borrowed trolley. His face was pallid and blank, almost as if he had just lost something dear to him.
What did he have that was ever so dear? she wondered as she helped her father heave her trunks off her own trolley and into the loading pile closest to her.
She noticed her father's mouth moving, but at that exact moment the train shot out a warning whistle, signaling that all students should be on board the train. "What did you say? I couldn't hear you," she shouted.
"I asked you if you had your ring," he said coolly, his dark eyes glinting maliciously.
Isadora rolled her violet eyes and waved her hand in her father's face. "You may have well just cursed it to never be removed from my finger 'til I die or have a kid, you know," she snapped.
Zachary Starbuck smirked at his only daughter and patted her gently on the shoulder. "I do not want you losing that ring," he said quietly as they walked to one of the doors of the train. "It has been in our family –"
"For generations, I know, dad. You've told me countless times," she sighed. The Hogwarts Express whistled impatiently, as many other students had yet to climb onto the train. "I'm going inside. Callum and Scarlett are probably looking for me."
She hugged her father tightly; as rude as they were to one another, their love was quite deep. Isadora's mother, Adelaide, worked for the Ministry of Magic, in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and was often late coming home from the office. Her work schedule resulted in Isadora and her father developing a better relationship than she and her mother; Zachary quite frequently taught Isadora various spells and incantations with which she could show off at Hogwarts without running the risk of being in any serious trouble with the headmaster.
"Darling," Zachary said quietly, holding tight to his daughter's arm, "please remember to personally thank Severus for assisting you with Potions last year. You owe him quite a bit of gratitude, considering we were all rather worried you wouldn't pass your O.W.L.S at the start of last term."
Isadora sighed and cocked her head to the side, staring at her father. "Yes, sir," she said; with a squeeze of her arm he let her go, and she wandered into the small corridor of the train.
Isadora had never been very good with Potions; her specialties had always laid in Transfiguration and Astronomy. The first four years of her career at Hogwarts, she always returned home with top marks in all of her classes, except for Potions, which she usually ended up ranking rather low. Against her wishes, her father had written to Professor Slughorn at the end of fourth year to request that Isadora receive tutoring lessons from any student the professor thought would better her chances of scoring high on her O.W.L.S. When a reply was sent, Isadora learned she would be joining a small study group Slughorn was planning on setting up, to be taught by his prized pupil, Severus Snape. For an unexplained reason, the name of her new tutor sent Zachary on a weekend journey to Wiltshire, in the southwest; when he returned, he seemed excited, yet calm, and would not tell Isadora the reason behind these emotions.
"Isadora!"
She turned her head and saw two of her housemates, Callum Bradford and Scarlett Holmes, standing in front of what appeared to be an unoccupied compartment. She made her way down the corridor towards them, not before sneering into the compartment of a group of first-years, who shied away from the door at her glance.
"Summer go alright?" Scarlett asked as they shut the door behind her.
Isadora shrugged as she fixed her hair. Jet black and long, she usually kept it up in a tight bun that rivaled that of Professor McGonagall; however, her fringe was never cooperative, and always ended up falling gently into her face. "Mother was rarely around. Couldn't begin to understand why," she said in a rather bored tone. "Father insisted I take flying lessons again, so that took up the majority of my time. And we had yet another visit from Lucius Malfoy."
"Really?" Callum whispered, leaning across the compartment so they didn't have to speak so loud. "About what?"
Isadora smirked, her eyes gleaming in the soft light that filtered through the compartment window. "I can't be completely sure, but I think it had something to do with the Dark Lord," she explained in a hushed voice.
Scarlett gasped and stared, wide-eyed, as the door slid open and two more fellow Slytherins poked their heads into the compartment. Erik Strathborne, a seventh year, and Jason Rochefort, a sixth year like the rest of them, leaned against the doorjamb and grinned at all of them.
"Can we help you, gentlemen?" Isadora sneered, irritated by the interruption of privacy.
Erik's eyes widened and he glared at Isadora. "Watch your attitude, Starbuck. Remember who you're talking to, here," he said, pointing to the badge pinned to his robes. "Head boy, you see."
Isadora stared at Erik, unimpressed by this apparent achievement. "Head boy of a house where the only thing that elevates your rank is how willing you are to torment other students? Interesting." She looked at her fingernails, as if the conversation was too below her to continue. She could hear Strathborne huff as he marched away.
Jason Rochefort remained in the doorway, staring absentmindedly at Scarlett, whose face was beginning to live up to her name. Isadora couldn't help but laugh. Everyone in Slytherin knew how badly Jason had it for Scarlett; bets were placed at the beginning of every term to see whether or not he would finally get up the nerve to ask her out.
"I'm going to find the tea trolley," Callum said suddenly, looking pointedly at Scarlett. Her wide blue eyes silently thanked him for giving her an escape from the awkward gaze of Rochefort, and she followed him out of the compartment. Jason stood uneasily in the hall, glancing at Isadora and then down the hallway.
"If you're wondering whether or not to stay here, the answer is no," Isadora said in a warning tone. When he still did not budge, she glared up at him from behind her fringe, and Jason turned on his heel and trotted down the corridor, probably in an attempt to follow Callum and Scarlett.
Isadora sighed, relishing in the emptiness of the compartment. The train had finally made it to the countryside; rolling hills and wilderness swept past them. She cracked the window, allowing some crisp northern air to slip inside. She wished she could make this journey in peace every year, instead of being obliged to ride with at least two others beside her. Not that she didn't enjoy the company of her friends; Callum and Scarlett were two of the few Slytherin students she could really put up with on a daily basis. Usually at some point, Regulus Black would make his way to her compartment, and they would exchange pleasantries for a few minutes before he moved on. His visits always made her heart beat faster; though she knew they would never be together (he was one of the most attractive boys in her house, so of course had girls crawling all over him), she still enjoyed the fantasy.
Absentmindedly, she toyed with the ring on her left hand as she stared out the window. A gift from her father after hearing she had been sorted into Slytherin, the single snake winding its way around her finger was a family heirloom. Usually, the eldest sibling of the Starbuck house would be given the ring, as a symbol that they were to be respected by their younger siblings. Luckily for Isadora, she did not have that problem. Soon after Isadora was born, her mother had an unfortunate accident involving a broomstick and a copse of trees, and was deemed unfit to carry another child. This, in Isadora's mind, was one of the reasons there was such a rift between her parents; Zachary took his pureblood status very seriously, and while he loved his daughter dearly, had been hoping for a son somewhere down the line to carry on their blood. But as long as Isadora married well in the end, her father would still be satisfied. At least, she hoped.
A scuffle had broken out in the hallway; Isadora poked her head out of the compartment to briefly see the back of James Potter's head, surrounded by his fellow Gryffindors, as he was pulled away from what could have turned into a violent confrontation with Severus Snape. Isadora shook her head and closed the door, returning to her previous activity of staring blankly out the window. Why her father had asked her to write a letter to Severus was beyond her; she thought it entirely unnecessary to thank another student for doing a task assigned to him by a professor. Granted, his lessons had been quite instructive, and without his help she most certainly would have failed her exams. But the thought of thanking him was absurd!
She noticed Severus sulking down the hallway out of the corner of her eye. Remembering what her father had instructed her to do on the platform, she rose from her seat and called him to the compartment.
Snape slowly turned around and made his way back towards her, keeping a sharp eye out for the return of his rivals. "Yes?" he asked quietly, crossing his arms across his chest.
Isadora stared blankly at him, sizing him up. He certainly wasn't anything special to look at; his hooked nose and lank black hair kept him from being a decently attractive young man. His robes were obviously bought second-hand, which did not help his appearance at all. He wished to be taken seriously in his house, but instead was looked at as a second-rate Potions whiz, even if he did know some pretty dark magic. "So I'm sure you're wondering why I wrote you this summer," she said offhandedly, leaning against the door.