Chapter Two - Rin

Rin's POV

Past

"Rin! Mei!" Mother's voice echoed through the burning building. I clutched Mei tighter, coughing pitifully as I called for my parents. A flash of white, and I saw her. Mother scanned the room before bounding into the closet, scooping us into her arms. "Why did you not come?!" There was anger, panic, and concern in her voice. I looked up into red eyes and nestled against her shoulder. White hair tickled my ears, and I felt occasional pinpricks as Mother's claws extended. Her breathing was shallow, like an overheated beast. In many ways, Mother could be considered a beast. A powerful, beautiful, loving beast.

Father sat outside, his face concentrated as he slowly healed his broken arm with magic. I heard a crack and looked up to see a heavy beam falling towards us. Mother heard it as well, and the next thing I knew, Mei and I were rolling on brittle grass. My sister had fainted, and I raced towards the door, screaming into the flames. Father caught me and held me against his chest. "Father! We have to get Mother out! Let me go!"

"No!" Mother cried from inside, her voice broken and wretched. "Leave me be! Get the girls out!" My father choked slightly, his heart beating fast against my back. Mother smiled from the next room even as the flames began to consume her. "I love you. Now, go!" The last I saw of my beloved mother was white hair burning black.

"It's Rin, isn't it?" A kind, inquisitive voice jolts me out of my memories. Looking up, I see a girl with curly brown hair and warm chocolate eyes. "I'm Hermione. Hermione Granger." She smiles and holds out a hand. I take it hesitantly, unsure of customs and greetings in this strange Western culture. "Welcome to Gryffindor." She welcomes me, and withdraws her hand. Turning her head, she snaps at the boys beside her. "Well, are you going to introduce yourselves?!"

"それは本当に問題はない!自分を苦しめて欲しく." I spoke without thinking, eyes closed as my native tongue filling the empty space and leaving a strange, stunned silence in its wake. Nervously, I look up, meeting the gazes of Vida, Hermione, and the two boys she'd scolded. Swallowing, I lick my lips anxiously, searching my memory for the English translation. "A-ano.. It's no… problem; really… I not do want you troubling it." My first sentence seemed successful, but the second caused confusion to paint their faces. I try again. "I do… not want you… troubling selves." I bit my lip, inwardly proud of myself for stringing the strange language together. Mei had always been better at such things.

The black-haired boy on Hermione's right side, directly across from me, gifts me with a gentle smile as his red friend snorts with laughter. He holds out a hand. "I'm Harry Potter. And this," he glances sharply at his giggling friend, who composes himself, "is Ron Weasley." I take the hand he offered slowly, afraid of crossing a social line. He shakes once, then releases his grip. Ron doesn't offer his hand, choosing instead to shove more food into his mouth. Loud laughter reaches me as two boys, twins and as red as Ron, pop up beside Harry.

I recognize them as the ones that slipped the balloon into my hands. It had popped with a shower of glitter, leaving me with three candies that Hermione had promptly snatched, throwing them back in the faces of the two boys. She had called them Puking Pastels. One of the two spoke. "I'm Fred," his twin spoke next, "I'm George," and then they spoke together. "We're Ron's big brothers, and can get you out of a tight spot anytime with one of many things in our bag of tricks!"

I look at Hermione as she rolls her eyes. "They'll prank anyone and everything. Don't let them give you anything; ask one of us," she gestures to Vida, Harry, Ron, and herself, "if you need something." She smiles, a dangerous gleam in her eyes as she nudged the boys. "We'll help her, won't we?"

Ron laughs sheepishly, exchanging a mischievous glance with Harry. "Yes, Mum." Hermione lets out a snort of disapproval, and Ron snickers before digging into his food more. Harry smiles at me as Vida squeezes my hand, excitement in her eyes. I sigh contentedly, watching the House ghosts drift by, and feel a flicker of hope. Perhaps it wouldn't be a bad year, after all. Closing my eyes, I see Harry's smile again, Hermione's eyes, and feel Vida's hand. Yes… perhaps this is just what we needed.

A/N - A.T. again. I promised you another chapter, and voile! Here we are. I figured I'd ease into it by first showing you all my OCs in the first chapter. This chapter, as well as the next five, will explore the backgrounds of each character. So, you've met Rin. You have yet to meet Mei, Vida, Mari, Catarina, and Javier. I will start each chapter with a potent, strong memory. Rin's was tragedy, but who knows what her sister's will be? :) Thank you for being patient, and I look forward to hearing what you have to say!