Please review and indicate whether I should continue or abandon.
"Ah… Ms. Malfoy. Come on in! I was just attending to Ms. Zabini here." Professor Slater called, just noticing how Katharina hovered at the door of the private study within the transfiguration classroom.
It would've been a spacious room had it not been bombarded with huge bookcases. Kevin Slater was a peculiar old man, without a family or a permanent home; he preferred the company of his books and the demands of teaching what he called the 'art' of transfiguration. Still, he was very much a socialite, wanting to know as much as he could about the lives of his students.
Not knowing that she was being observed, his favorite student's head turned at the title he provided. Kathy contributed a supercilious glance for a person she hadn't seen in a long time- Tamara Zabini was seated in one of the chairs in front of the table the professor was sitting behind.
The faint traces of sunshine from the room's only window behind the professor exaggerated the light tones of Tamara's needle-straight hair, making them appear almost white. The rest of her was just as pale, from the paper-like glow of her forehead, to her pale blue eyes, to the toes peeking from her stunning black peep-toe heels. The said shoes were perhaps the only notable part of her attire, and Kathy conjectured that they weren't hers but her mother's. The rest of her chosen apparel was a sickly gray. Was the lifeless hue indicative of her being Slytherin like her impudent brother or simply of her countenance?
Although Kathy's inspection was discreet, it coaxed a raised eyebrow from the previously emotionless features of Tamara Zabini.
"Forgive the intrusion, Professor…" Kathy said, finally addressing the tall, aged professor who was eyeing her unexpected reaction quizzically. "…but I'd like to know why the both of you are here despite it being a lovely Saturday morning."
"Er, she'd rather not say, I'm afraid." Slater replied, with an unsteadiness that was unusual for him. "Instead, what can I do for you dear?"
"I was just returning a book of yours, the one about the transformations." Tamara snorted at this and a wry smile appeared on Kevin Slater's lips, irking Kathy further. Kevin usually told her everything, yet this time he preferred to shroud her in infuriating mystery.
"Do tell her professor. She looks like she's about to explode, don't you think?" Tamara inquired airily, startling the two with her willingness to be open. "Train her as well, if you must. I gather that she's good at it if she's interested enough to read one of those horrid books. It would be like having a spare… just in case."
"Yes, it would, wouldn't it?" The professor replied, almost to himself alone. "Well, sit down then Kathy."
Katharina obliged eagerly enough, taking the seat opposite Tamara. "What is this about?"
"It involves extensive amounts of training and transfiguration talent. You will have to sacrifice months of your time to accomplish-"
"I'm going to become an animagus, and now you are too." Tamara said bluntly, causing Slater to sigh in annoyance at the interruption. Kathy, however, found that she was grateful for the cause to halt the professor- he did have a tendency to go on and on and on…
"Is that even permitted?" Kathy asked, her pride the only thing keeping her jaw from dropping.
"Oh, it's a necessity in her case." The otherwise jolly old man claimed tiredly.
"What? How? I mean-" Kathy struggled to find coherent words from the concepts jumbled up in her conscious. It was all coming at her too quickly.
"Let's save the questions for later, shall we? I'll leave you two to get the book on this." Slater stated, getting up. When he reached the door he addressed Tamara, "You're fortunate to have Katharina on the team, Ms. Zabini, she's quite the prodigy."
With that, the door closed with a tiny squeak, leaving the two to themselves. In spite of her deep curiosity, Kathy couldn't find the will to ask the enigma before her- did this have to do with her petty delinquent of a brother? What was behind all this mystery? Was it possible for the school to permit an animagus, even considering it necessary?
Looking up, Kathy saw that it had been her turn to be scrutinized, and she cleared her throat. She was completely out of place with the girl. "Are you Slytherin? I don't see you around."
"I am a member of the House of Slytherin, yes, and you don't see me because I don't want to be seen." Her bright blue eyes- eerily similar to her brother's- became clouded. "In case you didn't know, I was gone for a year with my family and when I came back just recently I realized that fading into the background is loads more advantageous."
"Oh?" Kathy was mystified. Her companion certainly had some strange but fascinating ideas about anonymity.
Tamara nodded. "You disagree, I'm sure; you with your propensity towards social climbing. Where I completely fade into the background you shine like the sun. We're contradictions like that- me a teenager not wanting to disappear rather than blend in and you believing that you're extraordinary despite your being truly unremarkable."
"Excuse me?" Kathy exclaimed, aware that she had been insulted.
"You are a renowned beauty to a vast a majority, but what is beauty really? Beautiful is what we were brought up to believe is beautiful, nothing more and nothing less. Therefore nothing is beautiful at all, we're all shades of the same color, one truly as unremarkable as the next. In fact, if you were born a century earlier, you would've been considered hideous."
"You're implying that I'm nothing more than my face and that I actually have no face at all." Kathy said in a carefully neutral tone. Beneath the surface, however, she was seething.
"You have yet to prove that you have talents that run deeper than what you have inherited and what you have been taught. So that inevitably adds your glorious quiditch playing, your knack for transfiguration and charms, your impeccable manners, grace, and your dazzling fashion sense to your so-called 'beauty' in the 'skin-deep' category."
Kathy, by now, realized how many times her overall character had been analyzed and affronted in over a span of a week. When will it stop? "Do you honestly believe you're any better?"
"I don't. That's exactly why I chose to fade in the background." Tamara answered in a voice that said 'I've given this explanation too many times'.
"That isn't any way to live." Katharina chastised.
Tamara shrugged. "I believe that is a personal stand, Malfoy."
"Yes, yes it is." Kathy said, relishing in how she startled the Zabini with the ease of her reply. "I'm just sorry about your personal stand, Zabini, nothing more and nothing less."
Tamara fell silent and Kathy felt compelled to add, "You know, despite your outrageous notions, you are a million times less horrifying than your brother."
Tamara smirked at that. "You have no idea."
Before Kathy could make her elaborate on this suggestive statement, approaching footsteps became audible.
"It seems you two get along well enough, even better than I expected, perhaps." The two students turned their heads to see their professor smiling mischievously by the door.
"Certainly, professor, and by the end of this we shall be the best of friends." Tamara exclaimed brightly.
Kathy searched for any kind of sarcasm but was astonished to find none whatsoever. What a strange creature!
"Excellent. I'm sorry to bust your bubble this early- I'm afraid I'll have to start with long lectures on the subject, such is the standard protocol." Long fingers combed through silver-streaked hair before opening flipping the contents of the book to the appropriate page. "It all started in the 17th century, when Frederich Fault found a way to embody transfiguration…"
Katharina and Tamara found Ms. Winona Chaisty leading oh so seductively against the wall across the door to the transfiguration room as they were leaving.
"Hello beautiful." Winnie purred, greeting her best friend with a big hug. "I missed you."
It was an embrace Kathy gladly returned, moving back only to smile at the blonde bombshell. She was looking fabulous as usual in a purple leather jacket over a lacey white dress and ballet flats. Her green eyes, artfully smudged with black eyeliner, were dancing- probably eager to impart something deliciously scandalous.
"How did you know where she was?" Tamara asked, startled. It unnerved her that Kathy found nothing uncanny about her friend's unexpected (well, for her) appearance; it unnerved them how she suddenly found her voice.
To answer her question the other two just raised their right arms to show how delicate silver chains graced their wrists. At once Tamara noticed a large obsidian gem dangling from each bracelet.
"Kathy charmed them to show where any of the three of us are." Winona clarified dutifully.
"Three?" Tamara asked curiously.
"Aiden has something manlier- an obsidian ring." Kathy told her swiftly, preferring not to elaborate further on something she found rather personal about her group. "Winnie, where are the girls?"
"Don't be rude, Kathy…" Winona's nose wrinkled, but whether from the mention of the hated nickname or the aforementioned 'rudeness' Kathy did not know. "…introduce me."
"Oh, this is Tamara Zabini." Kathy supplied morosely. It was half past noon and she was ravenously hungry.
"Ah. Well, the other girls are already in the great hall. We're dying to tell you some exciting news." Winona claimed, and Kathy rolled her eyes at how unthinkingly her friend dismissed Tamara. Well, who was being rude now?
"I suppose I can't keep them waiting." Kathy murmured, watching Tamara visibly shrunk away before discreetly disappear into another corridor.
"Of course not, and don't worry about Ms. Zabini; I'm sure she just wants to be left alone." Winnie stated matter-of-factly as she took Kathy's hand and dragged her in the direction of the Great Hall.
As they passed, large windows loomed, showing a clear view of the outside. So preoccupied by her thoughts on her animagus briefing, Kathy didn't notice anything strange about the outdoors.
"What's going on out there? I can't stand it any longer!" Winona moaned, walking to a tall window and attempting to see as much as she could out of it.
As the haze of distraction retracted Kathy began to see a crowd of people on the quiditch pitch. Abruptly she felt the hammering of her heart- it was in her nature to fear the worst.
"Where is Aiden?" She whispered, and watched as ivory lettering etched onto the obsidian charm of her bracelet. She saw the words just as Winona spoke them:
"In the Quiditch Pitch."
"Oh dear Merlin…" Kathy said, feeling all the dread clog her system.
Winona aimed a wan smile at her. "…my sentiments exactly… Let's go."
Several witches and wizards were hovering in the air in uniforms of red and gold. It was the Gryffindor quiditch team, and it was ten minutes ago that they were supposed to surrender their hold on the pitch to their Slytherin counterparts. But they could only watch as the team of green and silver suffered internal blows- those to the ego- rendering them incapable of claiming their playing field just yet.
Alexander Malfoy, the keeper of the hovering team, found himself watching on as his sister's closest male friend (Aiden Chaisty, right?) continued to argue heatedly with his captain.
Chaisty, for once, wasn't in uniform. This was certainly interesting development… did he get kicked out? Was he now demanding to be reunited with the rest of his team? Alex was dying to ask the only member who was absent- his sister. Her absence was a relief to him however, as the two furious males looked like they were ready to fight to the death.
"Where's your sister?" Archer Andrews, the famed seeker of Gryffindor and Alex's best friend, called from just behind him.
Alex knew of his infatuation for his younger sister long ago, and since then he had been advising the poor guy on how to charm her. The first thing he told Archer was that Katharina didn't like males who openly professed their love- there were too many of those already.
"Funny you should ask… I was just thinking that." Alex grinningly replied as Archer flew until they were side by side. "I think Chaisty, over there, warned her to stay away. Pity, though, as she wouldn't want to miss all the action."
"Hah! She would've sent a bludger in their general direction ages ago." Archer amended laughingly.
"Ah. There she is now."
The unmistakable red head of Katharina was indeed approaching. A few meters closer and they could tell that she was on her broom, flying towards the pitch in moderate speed to accommodate the needs of her passenger, Winona Chaisty, who looked like she was ready to start retching- not a big fan of flying, clearly. It seemed they wouldn't get to the field on time before the inevitable happened.
The Slytherin team had a strict no wand policy on the field- last time someone was turned into a lizard by accident- so it didn't come as a surprise to spectators to see the rivals come to blows.
Naturally, it was Loxley who aimed the first punch. Students pouring in to see what the commotion was about watched Aiden dodged it easily, being the lighter of the two. His agility was, perhaps, the only advantage he had over his taller, stockier adversary and he didn't waste it; he let loose an array of punches, landing a few on Loxley's jaw. Rod may have gotten a few hits at Aiden's chest, but he was kept back by the continuous storm of strikes.
The great hulk staggered back until he had enough room to catch his breath. "So that's how you want to play it, eh, pretty boy? Well let's see how good looking you'll be with a black eye!"
Just as he was about to deliver that unstoppable, black-eye-inducing blow, a bludger shot into the air and crashed heavily into his wrist. A terrible breaking noise was heard, subsequent by only a split second to an exclamation of agonizing pain.
Aiden looked around to see Kathy a good thirty meters away with her beater's bat in hand, her hair fluttering about her shoulders with the wind, and a steely stare aimed in his general direction; it was an unintentional show of excellent beating skills and the audience was floored. It was one of the many times he was glad to have her on his side.
"I told you so." Archer declared a couple of meters above the bloody scene.
Alex just shook his head in bemusement. "This is why she gets into trouble a hundred times more than I do."
"This is why she has a lot more fun than you do." Archer corrected, waggling his sandy-brown eyebrows at his friend. It was the undisputed truth.
Myriad shades of crimson and terracotta warmed the wallpaper. The carpet was of the same colors, accommodating the dark wood furniture around the large room. In the center of it all were the embers in the grand fireplace which seemed to be dancing to a hypnotic beat, enticing the emerald green eyes of Lily Potter with their glare.
Those startling eyes of hers were the only things that kept her from being the carbon copy of her mother. That is, to say everything about her- from the fervor with which she read the heavy books she carried around, to the way her mousy brown hair is stubbornly unruly- is unmistakably Hermione Granger, now Hermione Potter or Headmistress Potter.
On this particular day, Lily found herself studying all by her lonesome self. She had chosen to sit on the rug, leaning up against the couch across the fire with an open book on her lap left idle. It seemed that her musings occupied her more than any book could at that moment; rare one if I may say so.
Where was everybody? Normally, this room was packed with loud Gryffindor kids so much that she couldn't hear the sound of her own thoughts (which is quite a disturbance, really) but she found that she craved it in times like this.
It was then that she sensed eyes on her; she turned her attention to the numerous portraits on the wall. Great witches and wizards of the past gazed down at her piteously. She set her jaw and fervently wished that someone or even something else could become a source of their entertainment for tonight.
And, just like magic, her wish was granted.
The new fat lady's portrait swung open to receive two laughing figures.
"She looked like she was going to have a fit!" said Archer Andrews. Lily's heart quickened and her breath came quickly. Needless to say, she fancied him and everyone knew it… except poor, ignorant Archer.
"It's her first time, mate." Alexander Malfoy supplied, concern lacing his words. "And detention with Professor Sky is harsh, if you will remember."
"Yes, but that was your fault, my friend. I-"
"Why, hello there, Lily." Alex interrupted, not wanting a recounting of that unfortunate event and noticing how the girl kept sending lovesick stares in his best friend's direction. Five quick strides and he was sitting on the same couch she was leaning on.
"What's going on? Who got detention?" Lily inquired curiously, but she already knew the answer. Only one person could possibly interest the great Archer Andrews.
"Kathy."
Lily nodded; Archer was getting so predictable. Kathy, on the other hand, was spitfire; frustrating and intermittent. She was Lily's exact opposite, probably the reason everyone was out and about, not minding their own business. "What did she do now?"
"She drove a bludger into Loxley's wrist, shattering it into a million pieces." Archer answered in awe, sitting right next to Lily on the floor and causing her cheeks to flush at his proximity. She squirmed under his deep blue gaze.
"And why, may I ask, did he deserve such treatment from a subordinate?" Lily whispered, allowing herself stealthy glimpses of his perfect features. He was like a sun god with all his golden hair falling in waves that framed his face in a way that emphasized the masculinity of the tanned contours of his face.
For the love of comparison, it can be said that Alex had even lighter hair (if that was possible) and he was just as attractive in a different way. With his shrewd gray eyes, the Malfoy was all aristocracy and elegance where Andrews was all careless charm and mischievousness. Still, they could easily be mistaken for brothers-making up for the fact that neither had any of those- even earning the title 'Golden Boys'.
"He kicked Chaisty out of the team for personal reasons. Then, for some unimaginable reason, the banished bloke showed up for practice and they had a row which turned violent. Kathy felt that she needed to intervene." Alex said, sighing.
He had defended his sister loyally but kept covertly to himself that she had acted rashly. Ironically, now the dutiful older brother was taking the emotional stress of it badly. Kathy could cause quite a scene when provoked and he (no one else had been courageous enough for the task) stepped in before she could aim another bludger at Professor Sky.
"And it cost the poor captain his wrist." Archer added, with a 'tsk, tsk'. Then his tone became silky. "Kathy's so sexy when she's mad."
Alex aimed a glare at him then an emphatic glance at Lily who suddenly found her shoes very interesting. "You want a bludger to the wrist too, eh?" she murmured in a daze.
"Pardon?" Archer said, bringing his face inches closer to hers, not knowing the effect it had on her.
"Nothing. I have to go." She gathered all her things in a panic before running off to her room.
"What did I do?" Archer asked his friend in stupefaction.
"You were being thick, that's what." Gray eyes rolled.
"About what?"
"Girls."
"Is it that time of the month?" Archer asked, completely clueless as far as boys go.
Alex, who was of a special breed of boy, groaned. "Never you mind. If she can't get over it then Merlin help her."
"Help who? Lily? Why? Alex, what in Merlin's name are you talking about?" But his friend had already stalked off to bed.