Prologue

Lilith stood amongst her fellow students, staring at the Hat perched on the seat. Her mouth had gone dry, and she could feel her heart racing harder the longer she stared at it.

As each student went up the desire to run became more and more overwhelming. 'If I get Slytherin I might as well jump off the top of the school' she heard someone snicker behind her. As much as she didn't want it, she knew it was inevitable.

'This is the time to make us proud Lilith, bring some dignity back to your family'

Her uncles' words chimed in her head. How could you ever possibly bring dignity to something so foul?

"Lilith Lestrange!"

There are mumbles among the crowd as she takes a deep breath and steps forwards, she can feel the others students' eyes burning into her as she takes a seat on the stool and the hat is lifted onto her head.

What do you mean not Slytherin?

It was strange, like the voice in her head had suddenly taken on another form.

There's only one place you would fit in, unfortunately.

As the hat yelled out the words she wanted to cry but instead with a forced smile and forcing back the tears she joined the table full of her other classmates, ignoring the stares, boos, and sniggers from other students.

It was harder than she had imagined. Her house loved her of course. Bellatrix and Rodolphus Lestrange's daughter? How could they not. Gossip spread through the school faster than the plague, and it didn't help that she was now in a house that were despised by everyone else.

But she tried, to talk to them, to show she wasn't what everyone said she was. Lilith had been walking down the hallway with Marcus Flint a few steps ahead when she saw him push a first year Hufflepuff against the wall, laughing hysterically and shouting Mudblood at him as he walked off with this friend.

She had run over to the boy who was crying in a heap on the floor and keeled down next to him, placing a hand on his shoulder, but he scrambled away at the slight touch and forced himself off the ground. "Get away from me Death Eater!"

As he ran away, she threw her books to the ground and slumped against the wall, and as the week followed another five people had called her it. It wasn't until she was leaving potions one of those Weasley Twins, she wasn't sure which, had bumped into her. "Woah watch where you're going Deatheater" He had chuckled to his brother. That's what when she started keeping a tally in the back of her potions book every time someone called her it.

By Christmas she was sat on her bed in the dormitory staring at the quill scratches counting them off, so far she was up to a hundred and eighty seven.

Lilith wiped the tears away when Cordelia entered. "Well, at least we get to go home tomorrow. I'm so sick of school work. you're going home right?"

Lilith nods as Cordelia pulls a bag from under her bed. "Suppose you'll be going to see mummy and daddy" she laughs.

"You can't - " She pauses for a second. "Probably not." She hadn't told anyone yet that she hadn't seen her Parents since they had been sent there. She couldn't remember anything about them, how their voices sounded, what they smelt like, were they even good parents?

"Have you been crying?"

"No, no it's all the dust down here."

"I know it's disgusting. The house elves really need to pick up the slack. Are you coming for Dinner?"

"In a while."

As Cordelia opens the door Lilith flips the book back open and resumes counting.