Chapter 16:
Harry fastened the latch on his trunk with a loud click, and sighed, taking one last sweeping look around the room that he shared with Ron for any remaining belongings which had somehow evaded being packed.
It had been an eventful summer, an eventful year at that. It felt strange, to be sitting silently in his room, for it was very rare that he had a moment alone and he was wishing more and more for moments such as these, which was the main reason that he had lied about needing to finish packing his trunk whilst the others had gone for dinner.
He felt guilty, avoiding Ron and Hermione, but for some inexplicable reason the second he was with them a rush of rage and frustration ran through him. The rage and frustration that had consumed him for the entire summer…
The weeks and weeks of being alone, of not knowing what was happening, of remembering that night…
Don't think about that.
He was going back to Hogwarts in the morning, and that thought alone soothed him. Hogwarts made everything better.
And perhaps he would finally be able to speak to Dumbledore. He still couldn't fathom why the Headmaster seemed so reluctant to speak with him, and Harry found that it was upsetting him more than anything.
Dumbledore had been there the previous night, at Grimmauld Place, had spoken with Alina and Eve, but clearly did not have the time to speak with him.
He clenched his teeth to fight the growl of frustration that was curdling within his chest, almost burning his throat with intensity.
None of them understand that's what it boiled down to. None of them understood.
It hadn't ever bothered him, being the 'Harry Potter', losing his parents, living with the Dursley's, Quirrel, the Chamber, Voldemort, Cedric…
He shut his eyes tightly, sucking in a deep breath and shaking the thought from his mind.
Cedric standing beside him, drawing his wand, the flash of green….
He shuddered.
It was growing too much, too much to bear, he felt as though he was drowning and the pain and loss was suffocating him.
'Nobody understands' he whispered to himself, running a hand through his messy black hair.
Except maybe Sirius…or Alina…
The thought hit him quite suddenly, but it clung to his mind, absorbing into his brain and claiming its place there.
They had both suffered. They had lost their friends; they had fought Voldemort and had lost each other, and their child.
Eve.
She seemed to hate him, or at least seemed reluctant to associate with him in any way, and he did not understand why.
Was she jealous? Did she dislike his relationship with her parents?
That didn't seem to be it, but there was no other logical explanation.
Pushing the thought from his mind, he reached into his trouser pocket and pulled out the photo of the original Order that Moody had given him a few days before, and stared sadly down onto the happy faces waving back at him.
His green eyes found the familiar faces of his parents, and he let out another heavy sigh.
'I wish you didn't die' he stated simply.
He didn't hear the quiet creak of the floorboards outside his room, or notice that the door had been slightly opened ajar, and he definitely did not see the grey eyes watching him, pooled with confusion.
Instead he pushed the photo back into his pocket, stood up, let Hedwig out of her cage, and watched her fly out into the night sky.
'You do what?' Eve squeaked, her eyebrows shooting upwards and causing Alina to laugh.
'You walk straight through that wall' she grinned at her daughter, watching Eve's face as she tried to determine whether it was a joke.
She opened her mouth to respond, but the sight of Fred and George running through an apparently solid wall had caused her jaw to drop and hang open in shock.
This time, Alina burst out in peel of laughter, wiping her eyes at Eve's expression.
'Ready?' she grinned, nudging Eve with one shoulder and raising an eyebrow. Her question was echoed by an excited bark from her right, and they both grinned at Sirius' excitement.
'I guess' Eve replied nervously, chewing on her bottom lip.
Taking hold of one of Eve's arms, she led her forward.
'We'll go together.' She whispered, ignoring the knot of anxiety forming in her stomach.
She could sympathise with her daughter, the paleness of her face and almost grim expression as the nerves set in.
Eve had never experienced being in proximity to so many people, and the chance of running into the Malfoy's was highly likely, much to Alina's disgust.
But they had discussed this with Dumbledore, and Eve had decided that she wanted to travel to Hogwarts on the train with everyone else; it was Alina who was hesitant.
Many people believed her dead, and she was scared of her presence causing a scene. As for seeing the Malfoy's, her face darkened simply at the thought of them, and she knew it would take every ounce of self-control that she possessed to prevent herself from Kedavra-ing him on the spot, or at least torturing the very life out of him…
The familiar hustle and bustle of platform 9 ¾ surprisingly left her with a lump in her throat.
The sight of Ginny rushing over to chat to Eve, even more so. It felt as if history was replaying before her, in her mind's eye she could see Lily's red hair and sparkling green eyes bouncing excitedly up to her. She could remember the relief of leaving her father behind and being reunited with her friends…
How did it all end up like this?
'Are you all right?' she murmured to Eve, standing close to her and allowing her eyes to scan the crowd for any sign of Malfoy.
The man who had tortured her for years, who had tortured her daughter for years.
The man who had killed Polly.
Eve nodded silently, her face a faint tinge of green.
Fleetingly Alina wondered if Eve would have been this passive had she spent her life with herself and Sirius and not in that hellhole…but she immediately blocked the thought as a red flash of wrath took possession of her body.
'You'll have an amazing time' she told Eve 'Hogwarts is my favourite place in the world, and remember when you get there say hello to Sodales for me' she smiled fondly, thinking of the beautiful white unicorn.
'What if I'm in Slytherin?' she asked quietly, lowering her voice to prevent Sirius, who was currently beside Harry, from hearing her.
'You won't be in Slytherin' she told Eve, a sinking feeling setting within her at the very thought.
Sirius' family had all been in Slytherin…there was a chance…but Eve was certainly not a Slytherin.
'But I've done things…'
A loud whistle blew, signifying it was time to board the train, interrupting Eve.
'It's not about what you've done, it's about who you are' she quickly told her daughter, feeling concerned at the fearful expression in Eve's eyes.
She pulled her tightly to her, holding her close, and suddenly feeling sick.
From her embrace, her eyes had found Lucius Malfoy, who was glaring icily at her from the end of the platform.
Her blue eyes narrowed, and the rage that swept through her caused her entire body to shake violently.
She wanted to kill him. She wanted to crush every bone in his entire body one by one until he was begging for death …
Instead, as she met Lucius' glare with equal hatred, she pressed her lips to her daughters head and then whispered.
'I love you.'
Sirius' barks interrupted the moment, and Eve pulled away, throwing her arms around the dog and giving him a kiss on the head before two flashes of red bounded towards her.
'Come on Evie' Fred yelled, taking her trunk from her and heading towards the Hogwarts Express, as George grabbed her arm and began to lead her away from Alina and Sirius.
Eve allowed herself to be led onto the crimson train, glancing over her shoulder just before she boarded to get one last look at her parents.
They climbed onto the train, slamming the doors behind them just in time as the train began to move.
'See you!' Eve heard Harry cry, and she turned to look out the window, waving at the shrinking figures, and feeling her throat constrict at the sight of the shaggy black dog chasing the train down the platform.
'Bye Dad' she whispered to herself, although a glance from Harry told her that he had heard.
Go on, say something she dared him, waiting for a taunt or jeer, but none came. Instead he smiled at her in what appeared to be understanding before turning back to the others.
'He shouldn't have come' she heard Hermione state, and realised quickly she was referring to Sirius.
'Oh lighten up, he hasn't seen daylight for months, poor bloke' Ron brushed the comment off.
'Well' Fred announced, clapping his hands and making Eve jump 'can't stand around chatting all day, we've got business to discuss with Lee. See you later!'
He turned to leave, and George paused for a second turning to Eve.
'Will you be all right?' he asked, and it seemed strange to hear George speak in such a serious tone.
She opened her mouth to say that yes, yes she would be fine, but somehow words seemed to fail her, and instead she stared wide eyed back at him, feeling extremely unsure of herself.
'I think so' she managed to force out, and twisted her lips into some form of a smile.
'Come on Georgie!' she heard Fred call, and George hesitated for a second, looking as if he were about to say something else before flashing her a wide grin.
Whilst she had spoken to George, it seemed that another conversation had taken place between the others, and Eve turned back to them to find Ron and Hermione looking extremely uncomfortable as they spoke to Harry.
'Well, I – I might see you later, then' Harry was saying, his overly bright tone making his disappointment painfully obvious.
For a second, she felt a brush of sympathy as his friends made their way in the opposite direction, before turning to follow Ginny who was leading herself and Harry to find a compartment.
After making their way through the entire train, they reached the final carriage, and Harry and Ginny both recognised a round faced boy, gripping tightly to a large toad and greeted him as Neville.
Neville Longbottom although she couldn't place why the name was familiar, she was positive she had heard her parents mentioning it before and she watched curiously as they convinced the clearly unwilling Neville to enter the final compartment and join the girl, whom Ginny referred to a 'Loony Lovegood'.
'This is Eve' Harry introduced her to Neville as they sat down, and Neville beamed at her, making the corners of her mouth automatically stretch into a smile as she greeted him.
Eve found that after an hour, her nerves were finally settling and the overwhelming attack of discomfort finally relented its onslaught, and all it seemed to take for this relaxation were Neville's famous words; 'guess what I got for my birthday?'
It seemed, by Eve's observations, that an explosion of pus from a Mimbulus mimbletonia was certainly a way to break the ice. And it took Eve at least five minutes to calm down as fits of giggles made it nearly impossible for anyone to rectify the situation.
Adding Harry's traumatised expression at the tragically timed appearance of a very pretty Chinese girl, all of Eve's anxieties seemed to be a very distant memory.
'Does anyone want anything from the food trolley?' Ginny asked, a while later.
'I'll come with you' Luna offered 'I would like to see whether there is any Garlic Sherbet this time, it's an excellent ward for Vampires and Trinket-Fae's, you know' she informed them.
Nobody asked what a Trinket Fae was, or questioned why the food trolley would supply Garlic Sherbet.
Instead Eve politely declined Ginny's offer as did Harry, and Neville's quiet snoring was taken as a no. So, with a glance at Luna and an amused raise of her eyebrows, Ginny flashed them a grin before disappearing from sight.
Leaving Eve and Harry, for all better purposes; alone.
Crap.
Eve had learned, particularly having spent so much of her time alone in her life, that silence had the ability to be comfortable and often calming.
This, however, was not one of those occasions.
They sat in an unbearable silence, Eve examining her nails and Harry adjusting his glasses, the awkwardness almost tangible.
'How are you feeling about starting at Hogwarts?'
The question to both their ears sounded forced.
'Fine' she replied curtly, silently blaming him for the fresh bombardment of nerves she had only just vanquished.
'I know you don't like me. But I understand how you're feeling, you know'
His words alone made her freeze, but it was something in his tone that truly struck a chord in her heart, and her stomach flipped as guilt invaded her body.
Slowly, she raised her eyes until they met with his startling green ones, unwavering and oozing with intensity.
'I don't hate you' she replied quietly. It was true; she did not hate Harry. She was Draco's friend, and Draco did not like Harry, therefore she should not like Harry….
Right? Forcefully, she pushed aside the questioning voice in her head.
However, what she could not push aside was the image of him kneeling on his bedroom floor, his voice broken.
'I wish you didn't die.'
She blinked. Hard. Trying to vaporise the image.
'I was terrified when I first came here, I had no family, I didn't know anything about magic and I was sure I wouldn't make any friends' he told her, ignoring her response.
He's Draco's enemy. He's rude, he's arrogant, he thinks he's better than….
But her thoughts no longer seemed so utterly convincing in her own mind, or perhaps they were not as overwhelming as her urge to listen to him. To hear someone who seemed to understand her fear speak and relate to her…
'But you made friends…' she spoke hesitantly, keeping her eyes firmly fixed on him.
'Yes' he nodded, his eyes clouding slightly, something which Eve immediately picked up on.
'And you're angry at them?' she questioned lightly, noticing the flash of surprise in his emerald eyes and then his frown as if in thought.
He paused.
At first Eve didn't think he was going to answer, but after a moment of contemplation Harry fully turned to her.
'I'm not angry at them, I think I'm just angry' he told her.
'Angry about what?'
There was no longer any turmoil; every part of her was intrigued.
'About Voldemort, about the stupid Daily Prophet stories, about Cedric…' he sighed, and looked up at her, and she understood.
That was why he was speaking to her, he knew that she would understand. If anyone knew what it was to suffer as a result of that Monster, it was her.
'Who's Cedric?' she asked.
'Did you know Voldemort used my blood in the potion to get back his body?' Harry questioned, and Eve shook her head silently, her eyes wide with shock.
No, I did not know that.
Whatever had happened to Harry before the summer had seemed to be an unspoken elephant in the room.
'Cedric wasn't supposed to be there…it was supposed to just be me' the guilt was evident in his tone, and she opened her mouth to reply, when the compartment door swung open and Luna entered with a rather dreamy expression on her face, and Ginny came in looking utterly bewildered by the girl before her.
She quickly bit her reply, and grinned at Ginny.
The journey continued; as did the conversation, and every now and then Eve found herself glancing over at Harry, her mind in a whirl.
Perhaps there was more to Harry Potter than she originally believed.
Draco Malfoy sat in his compartment on the Hogwart's Express. And it truly was his compartment.
He lazily regarded his companions, arching an eyebrow at the idiotic expressions on Crabbe and Goyle's faces as they attempted to play exploding snap, to the even more ridiculous expression on that of Pansy Parkinson as she gazed at him with sickeningly sweet lust.
He smirked.
Pansy, like many of the other girls in his year, had developed a crush on him in fourth year, and it seemed that it still remained after the summer.
Good looks, Pure blood, wealth and now armed with his shining new Prefect badge, he was even more attractive to her and he was sure, to all the others as well.
Typical girls.
He had spent the first three hours of the train journey relating details of his summer, his peers hanging on each and every one of his words, but not once did he mention the event that had consumed all of his thoughts.
The event that he had stewed in his mind over and over; her expression of resignation as he raised his wand to point directly at her…
'I'm bored' he stated, in his usual drawl, preventing himself from hovering over the memory.
'Why don't we go for a walk, Draco?' Pansy suggested immediately, with her eyebrows raised in hope.
'Yes' he responded, watching her face light up in glee before turning towards the two boys opposite him 'Crabbe, Goyle, let's go.'
As he left the compartment, he smirked once again picturing the deflated expression that had wiped over Pansy's face.
Now, let's find some first years he thought, his fingers brushing lightly across his prefects badge.
The next hour or so, to his mild amusement, was spent handing out detentions, and deducting points from anyone that wasn't in Slytherin.
And he was satisfied, for the moment at least, that Slytherin would begin the year in the lead for the House Cup.
As they reached the end of the train, he had turned back towards their compartment, when Crabbe had, to Malfoy's surprise, managed to speak a full sentence that hadn't made him want to curse him, and instead cause a vindictive snarl to curve his lips.
'Potter's in that compartment.'
Keeping his hand on the end of his wand, which remained in its Malfoy emblemmed holster, he sauntered slowly towards the compartment, like a lion stalking its prey.
Entering the compartment, Potter had his head bent over a magazine and seemed to be sharing some kind of joke over one of the articles, before he looked up, his green eyes narrowing in recognition.
'What?' he snapped.
Immediately, Draco felt a cool sense of satisfaction at the annoyance his presence had caused the boy, and he turned up his nose slightly, peering down arrogantly at him.
He froze.
The words evaporating from existence in his mind, in fact, the entire world evaporating from existence.
His eyes had swept across the compartment, eyeing the familiar faces.
Weasley…Granger…Longbottom…Her.
She's alive.
Relief, like no other he had ever experienced, rushed through his body. Elation taking hold of him in its warm embrace.
She was safe.
He made to move his arm, to reach out towards her; he needed to touch her to ensure that she was real and not just an illusion.
But he caught himself before he had committed the atrocious act - before he had embarrassed himself entirely.
He met her gaze.
The amusement had not quite left her eyes at the pathetic little joke that she had been sharing with Potter and his Blood Traitor friends.
Eve.
The air left his lungs, and a silence, so mammoth in its weight pressed in on him until he felt as if he were going to crush beneath the intensity of his power.
He watched as the amusement disappeared from her grey pupils.
A flicker of shock…of happiness…and then…of guilt.
And so she should feel guilty he scathed she had left him; she had left him and ran straight to Potter.
He felt the steely edge of his eyes, glaring through her like ice cold blades.
Her eyes pleaded silently to him, her mouth was open the slightest amount as if she had quite forgotten the use of it.
And disregarding the great muster of strength that it took, keeping his expression utterly blank, he tore his eyes away from her and back to Potter.
'Manners, Potter, or I'll have to give you a detention…'
The rest of the journey had passed by in a haze.
No longer did the conversation interest, or amuse her. Her mind was elsewhere.
Her mind was with Draco.
She had seen the brief shock, the emotion, and the betrayal that had clouded his stormy eyes.
He must hate me.
Harry had been reading an utterly ridiculous article about her father and that one moment of amusement had fuelled the destruction of her friendship with Draco.
At first, she had wanted to run after him, to beg his forgiveness.
But she knew Draco well enough that he needed to cool down when he fell into his dark moods, and as such, chasing him through the train would not help.
In her daze, she spent the remaining time playing over scenes in her head. Scenes in which she apologised and all was forgiven. Where she and Draco would then go and play chess like they used to…
'Eve, we're here.'
She barely acknowledged Harry's words. She was too sickened by him to even spare a glance at the boy.
'Here' Ginny helped her with her trunk, smiling warmly at her.
'Thank you' she replied, a light smile tracing her face, her stomach twisting uncomfortably.
'Don't be nervous, it's going to be fine' the red head grinned, leading her off of the train.
The hustle and bustle on the platform vibrated into the night sky, and Eve felt incredibly lost amongst the excitable crowd.
'Eve Black?'
Eve turned at the sound of her name and saw a short, warm faced girl, who seemed a few years older than herself.
'Prudence Ashford, head girl' she introduced herself confidently, taking Eve's hand firmly in her own 'I've been told to escort you up to the castle, you'll be coming in the first coach so you can see Dumbledore before the feast.'
'I need to see Dumbledore before?' Eve asked, stumbling slightly as she allowed herself to be led through the crowd by Prudence.
'We don't often have new students…there haven't been any since I've been at Hogwarts anyway. You'll be sorted separately to the first years. Here we are!' she stopped abruptly before a carriage, attached to two strange winged creatures, with skeleton like bodies. One snorted, and stamped its hooves impatiently.
They looked odd. Out of place in comparison to the polished carriages and velvet coated seats.
Just like me.
Quickly deciding that she quite liked the strange horse like animals, she climbed up onto the carriage and let out a shaky breath of preparation as they began to move towards the castle.
After five minutes, in which she had learnt of Prudence's five siblings, her two pet owls, when she had first shown signs of magic, and that she was in Ravenclaw, they turned a corner and even Prudence fell silent.
The castle had come into sight, and it was beautiful.
For a split second, all thoughts of Draco and her nerves left her mind, and she gazed in awe at the sight before her.
The colossal black silhouette of the castle, pressing back into the midnight blue, held a majestic air. The moonlight bathing the stony building only made it seem more unearthly.
'Wow' Eve breathed, and Prudence beamed happily.
'Hogwarts' she stated 'best place on earth.'
She felt herself nod slightly in response, but Prudence seemed to understand and her efficient expression softened to a smile as she led her through the ancient oak doors and into a vast entrance hall.
Her neck began to ache, as she looked from left to right, amazed by the suits of armour, the chattering portraits and the winding staircases, and she collided straight into Prudence's back who had stopped before her.
'Cockroach Clusters' the girl stated, appearing to be speaking to a stone gargoyle.
Eve started to question the girls sanity, a prickle of paranoia tinging her veins, was she even the head girl? Was this a trick? A plan to kidnap her agai…
But all thoughts of a conspiracy were eradicated as the gargoyle nodded and a stone door opened before them.
'Come on, Eve, this is Professor Dumbledore's office.'
Leading her up the staircase, Prudence knocked sharply on the door they met, which immediately swung open.
'Thank you Prudence' Dumbledore beamed, after Eve had been introduced, dismissing the girl 'and welcome Eve'
Once the door had closed behind Prudence, Dumbledore peered over his half- moon spectacles, as if waiting for her to say something.
When she didn't he smiled slightly.
'Sometimes it's difficult for an old man like me to remember, that even though you look like her, you are not actually your mother' he chuckled 'who would have entered this office guns blazing, and questions firing' he added as an explanation.
Eve was unsure of how she felt about that. She was aware she was unlike her parents; she was not as lively and as forthcoming as them. She envied her mother's strength and passion. She envied their bravery.
She smiled politely.
'Hogwart's does not often have the pleasure of welcoming new students in older years, so in the unconventional fashion I felt that it would be easier for your transition in the school to be sorted prior to the feast.' He informed her, and she sighed in relief at not having to sit before the entire school.
Before Draco.
'We will sort you in a moment, but there is one matter that I wish to discuss with you before we do so…'
'I know not to tell anyone what I am, Sir. I haven't forgotten what we discussed –' she told him quickly.
'I know, I know' he smiled 'what I wish to discuss, is your name.'
Eve blinked.
'M-My name?' she frowned.
'You are aware of your father's reputation in the wizarding world, I know. So I want you to be aware of the repercussions of taking on the name Black…'
'-You mean that people will think I'm evil?' she clarified, in a deadpan voice.
Dumbledore studied her for a moment.
'Not evil, Eve. But it is common for people to prejudice against someone for merely carrying the name of a predecessor. If you feel that you would feel more comfortable taking your mother's name –'
It finally dawned on Eve what it was that her Headmaster was saying to her. Offering the chance to hide that she was a Black and of taking the name Blake instead.
It would stop the questions that no doubt would come, that was for sure. But the image of her father flashed before her eyes, the way his eyes lit up from their ghostly misery when he spoke to her, to him chasing her down the platform in his animagus form.
She was not embarrassed to be a Black.
She was proud.
'He's my father, and it is his name that belongs to me' she announced, tilting up her chin and staring unwaveringly at the old man as if daring him to suggest otherwise.
'Very well' Dumbledore smiled 'and once again, you remind me of your mother, you seem to have inherited her loyalty'
Before Eve could chew his words over, Dumbledore had jumped to his feet with surprising agility.
'Now, for the sorting!'
He walked over to one of his many shelves, and returned with a dusty old hat in his hands.
Eve eyed it suspiciously.
'The concept is' Dumbledore explained, noting her expression 'you simply place the hat on your head, and it will sort you accordingly to what is finds.'
Eve licked her lips, which had dried with nerves, and nodded permission for Dumbledore to place the hat on her head. She felt it in place, before the world went black as it covered her eyes.
There was a moments silence as Eve waited for something to happen, and jolted in shock as the voice sounded in her head.
'Well dear, you have to let me into your mind if you wish to be sorted' the hat told her archly, and Eve blushed, she hadn't realised how much of a defensive state she had fallen into.
Taking a deep breath, she relaxed her mind.
'Ahh, that's much better…now, what do we have here…another Black I see…'
My parents were both in Gryffindor she wasn't quite sure whether she had spoken the words out loud or merely thought them. She wasn't even sure why she had related the information.
'Oh I remember your parents well, both holding the need to prove themselves, both brave…oh yes, very brave…'
She would not be in Gryffindor. She had known from the beginning. She was not brave, she had done things that other children would have nightmares about. She had tortured and killed. She had worked for Him.
She was going to be placed in Slytherin. She knew it.
She thought of the scathing remarks from those in the Order about Slytherin, she thought of her father's disgust at the mention of the house.
'Slytherin is where dark wizards belong'
And she was a dark wizard was she not?
'Oh no, you are certainly not a Slytherin' the hat remarked 'neither sly, nor particularly ambitious. However there is bravery, and intelligence…but loyalty. I can see that loyalty leads you. Yes, there is a place for the loyal…HUFFLEPUFF.'
She felt the hat lift from her head simultaneous to her heart dropping to the floor.
'And hufflepuff is just for the leftovers…you know. Not brave, not intelligent and not evil, pure blooded dark wizards' her father had told her lightly, exchanging a grin with Remus.
She would have preferred Slytherin.
A/N: Thank you so much for all of your reviews, please keep them coming and let me know what you think!xx