The Serpent Queen

Jenny groaned, stretching out her arms and flexing her wrists to try and ease some of the tension that had built up during today's mock exam. Her hand had begun cramping halfway through, but no way was she going to let that stop her writing; in fact, she had been determined to get full marks. A lot of people had told her that she should be in Ravenclaw with a brain like hers, and in some ways she supposed that that should be a compliment. But she knew that she was in the right house. In fact, the main reason she liked getting full marks was to wind Ravenclaws up. It had been no surprise to her that she had been made head girl at the beginning of this year. Despite a shaky, often violent start at Hogwarts, she had turned out to be quite the leader. Most of the younger years were in awe of her, and even her own classmates showed her a good deal of respect. God, had she earned that. But over the years, a lot of her house had begun to trust her, due to her steadfast, hardworking and sometimes cheeky nature, and once you'd earnt the trust of a Slytherin, it was for life. In addition, she'd also tutored quite a lot of the younger years, and most of them were in her debt. Yes, it was good to be a head girl. And it was then she heard the crying.

Her ears pricked up and her eyes narrowed as she stopped and searched the corridors for the source. Even though she wanted nothing more than to go back to the common room, have one of the first years fetch her a cup of tea and then relax in front of the fire with her friends, it was her responsibility to investigate. Heading towards the sound, she heard signs of a scuffle. Rounding a corner, she came across two boys and a girl pushing what looked like a first year around the corridor. Recognising two of them as Slytherins, she called to the sharply; "Bletchly! Knot! What do you think you are doing?"

They spun around, and their smirks quickly metamorphosed into looks of pure terror. "J-Jenny…um…we were…"

"We were just having some sport with a first year," the second boy, a Ravenclaw said, shrugging. "It was just a harmless bit of fun."

"A harmless bit of fun?" Jenny advanced slowly, and despite himself, the boy took a step back. "She's crying."

"Oh come on, Jen, she's just a Hufflepuff," the girl, Bletchly, said. She quailed under the look Jenny gave her.

"Firstly. Never call me Jen again or I will curse you into the hospital wing. Secondly, I don't care what house she is, she a first year, she's tiny and you are all fourth years. If you think that picking on a first year who can barely cast Lumos makes you look big, then you are very, very, wrong. It makes you look like cowardly little shits who are so insecure about their own position that they have to resort to fighting someone who can't possibly beat them, for a couple of years at least. It's little pricks like you two," here she gestured at the Slytherins, "Who give my house a bad name. If you want to fight someone, go and challenge someone with the skills to match you, you dirty cowards. I may turn a blind eye to the odd duel or fight, but I will not tolerate bullying, do you understand me?"

The two of them nodded mutely, their eyes wide and terrified.

"Oh come on, we were just messing-"

The Ravenclaw wibbled as Jenny towered above him, her dark eyes flashing. "Detention, this Friday," she snapped. "If you ever speak to me out of turn again, or try arguing with me, I'll make it a month's worth, do you understand?"

The boy nodded silently, his shoulder's slumping.

"And you two," she gestured at the others. "You can tell your friends that if I catch anyone else bullying, there will be trouble."

They gave swift, silent nodes as well.

"Now get out of here." She waved a hand and they all but ran back towards their respective common rooms. Jenny watched them go, before turning to the tiny blonde Hufflepuff girl. "Are you okay?"

The girl nodded, rubbing away tears.

"What's your name?"

"S-Sophia. Sophia-Mae."

"It's nice to meet you," Jenny said. "I'm Jennifer Aubameyang, head girl. Has this been going on a while?"

The girl nodded. "A couple of months."

"Did you tell anyone?"

"I-I have some friends in the second year. They guessed something was going on, but I didn't want to cause any trouble, so I didn't say anything."

"Okay." Typical Hufflepuff. "Well they're not going to give you any more trouble, I'll see to that."

"Sophia!"

Jenny looked up. A brown haired boy was running towards them down the corridor. He skidded to a halt beside the girl. "Are you okay? I couldn't find you after your class today…" He trailed off when he saw Jenny. "Um…"

"Jenny Aubameyang, head girl. Your friend here has been experiencing a bit of trouble with a couple of other students, Mr..?"

"Damian," he said, giving her a nervous smile, before shooting a look of concern at the younger girl. "Blaze Damian. What kind of trouble?"

Jenny gave a wan smile. "Let's just say that that trouble is over, and if she experiences anymore, come straight to me and I'll nip it in the bud, okay?"

"Okay." He cast a questioning look at Sophia, before turning to look back at Jenny. "Thank you. I'll escort her back to her dorm now."

"You're welcome." They turned and began to head off. "Oh, Blaze?"

The boy turned back to her. "Yes?"

"If you're the second year I've heard about, you are struggling a bit with your wand work in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Tuesday, 6 o'clock, Fourth Corridor. I'll be giving you a bit of tutoring."

"Urm…" he flushed slightly. "Thank you. I'll see you then."

"See you then Mr Damian." She turned smartly and began to walk away. It was time for that cup of tea.

The Lioness and Her Pride
Part I

Melinda really shouldn't have been disappointed that her parents hadn't been there to see her and her brother off, but she was all the same. She hadn't expected it, but a little part of her had kept hoping, despite the odds. However, it was just her, Phee, their driver and Beatrice, the nanny, as they walked across the bustling platform, Beatrice pushing one trolley, the chauffer pushing the other. She glanced around at the other students as they moved through the crowd, trying to identify the other first years, her future class mates. They were easy to spot; they were the ones looking scared, or whose parents were crying. She felt a twinge of jealousy and swiftly pushed it down. It wasn't like she was missing out on much; even if her parents had been there they would have been cold and distant. As usual. She noticed that Phee was shaking slightly, and reached out to squeeze his hand. "You'll be okay," she said softly. "You'll make loads of friends, and if not then you'll always have me."

He nodded, his lip trembling slightly. "What if we're not in the same house?"

"That doesn't matter. It will be good to have some of our own space, but we'll still be able to visit each other whenever we like."

"But Mel, what about…" he gulped and lowered his voice. "The…the nightmares? And…and…" his face flushed with shame.

"For the nightmares, I got you this." She pressed a small parcel into his hand. "And as for…the other problem, I'll let the house elves know, first thing. Okay?"

"But…but what if people find out?"

"The people who matter don't mind, and the people who mind don't matter. And if they give you trouble, I'll make them very sorry, okay?"

He gave a little nod, a smile spreading onto his face. "Thanks Mel," he said, before hugging her tightly. She hugged him back, releasing him after a couple of seconds.

"Come on, we need to get on the train."

Beatrice and Stevens had already loaded their luggage on board and found them a compartment. Beatrice handed them each a cat basket.

"Remember to feed them, yes?" she said, sniffling slightly as if she was trying not to cry. "And remember to have fun, yes?" She pulled them in and hugged them tightly, before kissing them both on the cheeks. "I will see you both again in the holidays, ne'cest pas?"

They both nodded. Stevens shook both of their hands, before they climbed on boards the train and sat themselves down in their compartment. They waved enthusiastically to Beatrice and Stevens as the whistle blew and the train slowly began to chug away from the station. When they were out of sight, they both sat back in their seats, Orpheus looking out of the window curiously.

The compartment door opened, and Melinda looked up.

"Excuse me," a girl said in a nervous voice. "Can I sit here, please?"

She was tiny, with wide green eyes and a pale, pointed face covered in freckles. Everything about her was pointy, her bony elbows, her little chin, her ski slope of a nose, even her tiny ears which Melinda could see poking out through a swathe of dark red hair. She had a sallow, almost miserable look around her pallid face.

"Sure," Melinda said, getting up to help her with her trunk, helping her to heft it up onto the luggage rack. "I'm Melinda Black, and this is my brother Orpheus."

The girl smiled, and her pointy face lit up, and Melinda suddenly saw how pretty she was, an almost hidden prettiness which was revealed only when she smiled.

"I'm Mia," she said. "Mia O'Sullivan. It's nice to meet you. And thank you for your help."

"You're welcome," Melinda said, sitting down and patting the seat next to her. The girl joined her, pushing her heavy hair out of her face.

"So…um…do you know a lot about Hogwarts?" the girl said, cocking her head to one side like a nervous sparrow.

"I know some," Melinda answered. "Both of my parents went there. We were mainly bought up by Beatrice, our nanny though, and she went to Beauxbatons." She saw the confusion on the girl's face. "Beauxbatons is a magical school in France. You're muggle born, aren't you?"

The girl shrugged. "I might be. I'm not sure. I'm adopted, and I don't know who my real parents are. My adoptive parents are muggles though." She hesitated. "Is that a bad thing?"

Melinda thought carefully before arguing. "Some people think so. Our family is pureblood, and one of the most ancient houses in the country. Our parents have often told us that muggles are beneath us. Luckily for Phee and I, however, they didn't realise that our nanny was actually muggleborn. We have thankfully escaped out parents prejudices." Her face twisted. "Truth be told, I don't have the best relationship with my parents and would really like to get as far away from their toxic ideals as possible. So you won't find any prejudice with us, at least. To be honest, these prejudices are often viewed as extremely outdated anyway. Don't worry too much about it."

Mia looked extremely relieved. "So it's like segregation in America. It used to be a big issue, but it's been resolved and only a few outdated people actually care anymore?"

Melinda nodded. "Pretty much." A curious look stole over her face. "What happened in America?"

Mia smiled, before launching into an explanation of Race politics in 20th century America. By the time she finished, Melinda was pretty positive that the girl was going to be in Ravenclaw.

The Great Hall was decorated with hundreds of floating candles. Melinda tilted her head back to look at the ceiling, her eyes widening when she saw the starry sky above. She glanced at Mia, whose eyes were practically bulging out of her head with wonder and curiosity. She looked around her as the women at the front kept calling names. Phee was right next to her, clinging tightly to her hand. She gave his a reassuring squeeze. They would be called up any minute now…

"Black, Melinda."

She gave Orpheus a smile and eased her hand out of his, heading up towards the dais, her head held high. She sat gracefully on the stool, the hall disappearing from sight as the hat fell over her eyes.

Hmmm…a Black. But not like the Black's I've seen before.

I suppose not, she replied mentally.

Curious. There's intelligence, yes. Kindness too, if you let it out. Ooooh, and cunning, a lot of cunning. You could be great, you know.

An image of herself as a powerful dark sorceress flashed into Melinda's mind, and she couldn't help a tiny smile curling around her lips. But then she thought of Phee, and of Beatrice and the harm that had been done to muggleborns like her by people seeking greatness.

I'll find greatness in my own way. Not through cruelty. She thought. I am not my parents.

The hat chuckled softly. Interesting. Very, very interesting. If you're sure, better be…

"Gryffindor!"

The table to her right exploded with cheers. Melinda removed the hat and walked confidently over to them, a wicked smile spreading across her face. Her parents would be livid. Good.

"Black, Orpheus."

She turned her head to watch her brother sit on the stool. The hat was only on his head for a couple of seconds when it cried out; "Hufflepuff!"

Melinda smiled and clapped as her brother stumbled over towards the yellow table, who welcomed him with welcome arms and kind smile. Yes, he would be happy there. And her being in Gryffindor should that most of the heat off him when her parents found out. She gave him a smile and a thumbs up across the hall.

"I'm proud of you," she mouthed, and he smiled back at her.

"I'm proud of you too," came the reply.

The Lioness and Her Pride
Part II

Melinda gently teased a knot out of the mane of red hair in front of her, her expert fingers deftly unravelling the mass of strands. Her best friend had been on edge all night, and Melinda knew that the best way to get the girl to calm down was to play with her hair, make her a cup of tea and have a good gossip. Tonight though, despite Melinda's best efforts, it didn't seem to be working. Mia was biting her lip, a sure sign that something had upset her, and Melinda was pretty sure that the girl would draw blood in a minute if she didn't stop.

"What's up?" she asked casually as she began to twist the girls thick hair into an intricate braid.

"What? What do you mean? Nothing's wrong, I'm fine!" the girl gabbled, starting slightly.

"Mia, you're biting your lip." Melinda fastened the plait and swung herself down into the armchair next to the girl. "Talk to me."

Mia dropped slightly, staring fixedly at the floor.

"Come on Mia. Spill."

"I spoke to Zeb today," Mia whispered.

Melinda started slightly. "Zeb? What did he say?"

"He…he…"

"Mia." She gripped the girls hand tightly. "What did he say? Come on. You can tell me anything. I won't get mad."

"It's me," Mia said in a small voice.

Melinda froze. "What?"

"The girl he likes…it's me. He asked me out."

Melinda's eyes narrowed slightly. "I see."

"I said no," Mia said hurriedly. "I mean, you're my best friend! I couldn't do that to you, not when it's only been two weeks!"

Melinda's only answer was to stand up and hurl her teacup at the wall. The fine china shattered against the stone, making Mia jump.

"Reparo." Melinda pointed her wand at the cup, which reverted to its previous form. She walked over and picked it up, before placing it back on the table. "Sorry. Had to get that out of my system," she said in a voice which only trembled slightly. "Do you like him?"

"Uh…" Mia blushed.

"So that's a yes." Melinda, despite herself, felt tears welling in her eyes. One escaped down her cheek, plopping onto her lap.

"Mel, I'm so sorry, you know I would never…"

"I know." Melinda suddenly reached out and grabbed the girl, hugging her tightly.

Mia blinked, but hugged her back.

"I'm sorry, I just…it means so much to me that you would do that for me," Melinda said, finally releasing her captive and wiping her eyes. "Also it pisses me off that the fucker is moving on so fucking quickly. What a dick."

Mia nodded her agreement. "Yeah. What a bastard. Fuck him. We don't need him." She hesitated. "But next Hogsmede visit, I vote we buy out Honeydukes."

Melinda laughed. "Chocolate is so much better than boys. She poured herself some more tea. "To us?"

Mia nodded, and raised her cup. "To us."

The two girls both grinned wickedly and chinked the cups together

The Lioness and Her Pride
Part III

Zeb Cray yawned, reaching his arms up over his head and stretching. It was getting late, and on hearing the clock strike one he'd retired for bed, leaving the card game taking place in the common room to go one without him. He unbuttoned his shirt and let it drop to the floor, pulling his tie off over his head. He removed his trousers, and flopped into bed in just his boxers, and he'd just closed his eyes and began to get comfy, when something hard, thin and decidedly wooden poked him in a very uncomfortable place.

"Muffliato."

Zeb yelped, and his eyes flew open. A shadowy figure was bending over him, and he yelled for help as loudly as he could.

"Oh, shut the fuck up, Zeb. No one can hear you," said an all too familiar voice.

As his eyes adjusted to the light, the features of the dark figure sharpened, and he recognised the face of his ex-girlfriend standing over him with her wand pointing back at his groin.

"Melinda, what the fuck are you doing?!"

"Having a little chat." She sat down on the end of his bed, wand still pressed uncomfortably close to his privates for comfort, a wicked gleam in her eyes that used to excite him. Now, it terrified him.

"How did you even get in here?!" he said, panic rising in his chest. He beat it down, struggling remain cool and collected, but that was hard when he was pretty sure she was here to blast off his manhood for some reason. A reason he had a nasty suspicion that he knew.

"Got the password off of your brother. He was most accommodating when he heard what I was here to do."

Fuck you, Keon. Zeb thought vehemently, silently swearing vengeance on his sibling.

"Look, Mel. I know that you were pissed when we broke up. But that was a year ago now, and you have Blaze now…I know Mia's your best friend but…shit, have you hurt her?"

Melinda stared at him for a moment, before bursting out laughing. "Me? Hurt Mia? Fuck no." She straightened her face and her eyes narrowed. "Actually, I'm here to make sure that that doesn't happen."

Zeb blinked. "Eh?"

"Put it this way, my dear Zeb." She gave him another jab, and he tried not to squeal. "If you fuck my best friend over, if you treat her badly, or cheat, or leave her in the lurch suddenly because you've decided you like someone else…" Here Zeb had the grace to look slightly guilty, "Then you are not going to like what will happen to you. Not one bit. Do you understand?"

Zeb gave a silent nod, trying not to look scared and failing.

"Good. I'm glad we're clear on that." Melinda rose to her feet. "Goodnight then, Mr Cray." She gave him an angelic smile. "Sweet dreams…"

-x-

Keon looked rather grumpy as Melinda exited the Slytherin common room. "You told me you were going to switch his lube for bubbatubba pus!"

Melinda grinned. "Trust me, Keon. If he hurts my friend, that is the first thing I am going to do." She let out a soft chuckle, before stalking off back up the stairs towards her own corridor.

Keon watched her go, paying particular attention to the sway of her full hips until she was out of sight. He shook his head slowly, making a mental note never to even look at Mia O'Sullivan. One hand strayed protectively to the front of his trousers at the mere thought.

It's funny, he thought to himself as he slunk back into his own common room. In another life, she would have made one hell of a Slytherin.

The Lioness and Her Pride
Part IV

The streets of London shone gold as the glow of the streetlights reflected off of the rapidly forming puddles. Melinda has often felt claustrophobic in the city growing up, but that was mainly due to the fact she was never allowed out of the house or it's grounds until she reached the stage when her parents couldn't physically stop her. She had never truly experienced the muggle world until becoming friends with Mia, which was when the wonders of London had truly opened up to her. Museums, parks, shopping…Melinda was proud to say that she could now navigate the tube with ease, and it was as good a floo powder or a broom for getting her where she wanted to go. She had never thought that she'd find beauty in the rainbow swirls of a petrol streaked puddle, but the Muggle world definitely had its charms. Those early summers staying at Mia's had been some of the best of her life, until, of course, that no longer became possible. She came to a halt in the middle of a square of tall, Georgian houses which ringed a central garden. She tilted back her head, peering up at the number from under her umbrella, before walking up to the front door. She still had her key, so she just let herself in, shaking the umbrella out outside before stepping into the hallway and shutting the door behind her. She wiped her feet, more out of habit than politeness and trod softly down the carpeted hallway, listening closely. She'd be in the lounge, Melinda knew, probably smoking one of those long, thin, awful smelling cigars and sipping a glass of sherry.

She pushed the door open without knocking.

The woman's face was more lined than she remembered, her eyes more sunk in, her lips thin and pursed. Her eyes followed Melinda as she walked across the room, her expression suspicious.

"I take it you heard then," the woman said leaning back in her chair, the dark curls piled on top of her head wobbling slightly as she moved her head to watch Melinda sit on the sofa, making herself at home.

"Of course I did," Melinda said with a beautiful smile. "Really Mother, the news was bound to get back to me somehow."

"It's not too late," the woman said leaning forwards, her cigar trembling between her yellow stained fingers. "We can find you a nice, pureblood boy. We can overlook your unfortunate choice of house and-"

She was cut off by the low chuckle that the girl opposite her let out.

"Really, Mother?" Melinda said, cocking her head to the side. "You think you can sway me like that?" She smirked. "I have an idea. What don't you keep me in the will, and I'll marry whoever I want, and then you can divide everything up equally between me and Phee when you finally go and kick the bucket like Dad?"

The old woman's lips curled. "You think I'd let that filthy blood traitor set foot in my house? The Ancient and Most Noble House of Black? You think I'd allow you to pollute my bloodline with filth and walk away scot free?"

Melinda's smile just widened, although her eyes were glinting rather nastily. "Oh Mummy dearest. Do you want to hear my second idea?"

Before the old woman could react, Melinda had drawn her wand.

"Accio wand," she said in a calm voice, and before she could stop it, Hera Black's wand had sailed across the room into her daughter's hands. "Now Mummy," she continued, pointing both wands at the woman. "Are you listening closely? Good. Now. You are going to keep both Orpheus and myself in that will. You are going to leave us everything, equally divided. And you are going to swear this to me in an unbreakable vow, or tomorrow your body is going to be found hanging from the ceiling of your bedroom. The ministry will declare that you killed yourself because of the grief of recently losing your husband, and Orpheus and I will inherit everything anyway, as I am fully aware of how your will currently stands. Are we clear?"

Hera stared at her for a long moment with wide eyes before nodding. Melinda beamed and moved forwards to take her mother's hand.

-x-

In the growing darkness, a young woman left Number 12 Grimauld Place, putting up an umbrella as she went.

In the dim, unlit sitting room, her mother sat, her hand outstretched and trembling, before pouring herself another sherry and tipping a thin, white powder into it.

It wasn't winning, the old woman thought, but it was as close as she could get when her daughter held all the cards. At least she was choosing her own demise, instead of her daughter staging it; the last bit of control she had.

She downed the sherry and sat back in her chair, closing her eyes. As the world started to grow fuzzy, a small smile flickered across her lips.

My God, she thought with a strange sense of pride as the darkness took hold. My daughter was a Slytherin all along.

When the house elf found her body in the morning, the smile was still on her lips.