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I. A Journey of Discoveries
Topic Started: Aug 10 2011, 03:57 PM (387 Views)
Kayla

A girl with long black locks sat in a compartment all to herself on a red train making its way through the Scottish countryside. She gazed out the window at the passing fields of sheep and cattle.

She rested a hand on the window, then wiped away condensation. The glass was as fogged as the air outside. Rain pours down on the train, the droplets making loud splatting noises as they slapped the metal roof. The grass outside was so bright green that it was almost painful to the eyes, a harsh contrast to the gloomy sky above.

Why did she bother coming year after year? Maybe because it was all that she had. Even if she wasn't well-liked at school, at least it was home. That was more than she could say for the manor house in Wiltshire, near all the other rich homes with well-to-do families who had it made.

Social club invites, endless summer parties. Alanis, as usual, had remained in her bedroom all summer, reading the textbooks for the coming school year. Sometimes, if the weather was nice, she would read under a shade tree at the far end of the estate, all alone with no one there to gawk at her.

She had read through every single one of her text books for the coming school year. She was by no means a brainiac or extremely smart, as Professor Snape so often enjoyed reminding her. She simply liked reading. Books never insulted its reader. Unless it was cursed, that is.

It wasn't like she was without friends. They all lived far from where she did in the summer. She wrote every day, but more often than not she received few replies.

There was one night in the summer that she considered to be glorious, and that was when she attended the Quidditch World Cup.

_ _ _ _ _

Natasha Arkham walked down the Hogwarts Express, looking for a spare compartment after being kicked out of hers by a group of loud, rude Slytherin guys. Her best friend Sean McCulley followed behind her, dragging his trunk, looking more cheerful than she felt. She peered through the window of one and saw that a single girl sat in there. She opened the door.

"Mind if we crash?" she asked.

The girl looked up.

Natasha recognized her. She'd seen her around at Hogwarts since they were First Years. She knew Alanis Roland was a Slytherin, a house of students that Natasha generally kept her distance from.

The girl shrugged in reply.

Sean frowned down at Natasha. A Gryffindor (Natasha) and a Hufflepuff (him) in the same compartment would not bode well. The look Natasha gave her best friend in reply said that there were no other options--all other compartments were full, or their occupants were unwilling to let them in.

Natasha heaved her trunk onto the rack and Sean did the same with his. They sat.

She glanced across the compartment and noticed the girl staring at her. The dark-haired girl locked eyes with her, her expression unreadable. She turned and looked out the window again, frowning now.

Natasha shrugged to herself. Weird Slytherin.

"I wonder where Shanna is?" she wondered aloud. "I haven't seen her since we boarded."
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lost_dark_soul

Shanna Arkham was Natasha's identical twin sister. Her train ride so far consisted of trying to find her friend Quincey (Quin) Hunter and sister respectivley. She eventually found Quin sitting on the floor in the corridor. His trunk beside him in a cage on top his pet barn owl, Bob.
"There you are, I waited on the platform as long as I could, I was worried you hadn't made it." Shanna said. Quin looked up.
"I nearly didn't, mum always get nervous at the platform entrance, it took her ten minutes to let me out of the bear hug. After 3 years you'd think she'd be used to it." Quin answered. Shanna shrugged.
"She probably claims that's the reason because she hate not having you home until christmas." Shanna suggested. Quin gave his akward smile.
"Yeah because school is gonna kill me." Quin said sarcastically. Shanna ignored him and held out her hand to help him up.
"Come on, or Natasha's gonna have got herself into trouble." Shanna said.
"She's going to hate it if that's what you think." Quin said standing and grabbing his owl. Shanna grabbed one of his trunk handles as he grabbed the other. and they made there way down the train to find Natasha.
"I know, I can't help it, she seems to have a nack of it when I'm not around." Shanna replied looking through each compartment window.
"Anyway, how was the world cup?" Quin asked.
"It was brilliant, excpet for at the end, I suppose if death eaters are going to attack they may as well attack something that will hit home." Shanna sighed recalling the memory. She finally found Natasha's compartment and opened the door.
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Kayla

Mr. and Mrs. Arkham begged Natasha and Shanna to stick close together this year, especially while on the train. Last year, in the beginning of their third year, Dementors boarded the train looking for the escaped Death Eater convict Sirius Black, who had sneaked out of the wizard prison Azkaban only weeks before.

This year, after the Quidditch World Cup, and when most people were either in their pajamas or still celebrating Ireland's victory, a group of dark-robed men in pointed hats clutching torches had ambushed the large campsite. Natasha, who had never been much interested in sports, was not there, but she heard it all from Shanna, who had gone with their dad Tobias.

So that, paired with the fact that Sirius Black was still at large, had understandably made the Arkham parents nervous. Natasha, being secretly protective of her sister, intended to be near her whenever they were outside of Hogwarts.

Not that Hogwarts was terribly safe anyway--the murderer had entered the building the year before and attempted to enter the Gryffindor common room! And the year before that, an evil diary had trapped Ginny Weasley in the Chamber of Secrets. And the year before that, Natasha and Shanna's first year at Hogwarts, the DADA professor, Quirrell, had tried to steal the Philosopher's Stone, which had been kept hidden under the castle. Rumor was that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was involved in all of these events. Natasha was sure of it.

Of course, she preferred to call the evil man by his name--Lord Voldemort. Professor Dumbledore always said that fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself. Mr. Arkham had always said that, too.

Sean looked up as Shanna and Quinn entered the compartment. He nodded in greeting to them. "Hey."
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lost_dark_soul

Quin nodded in responce, he still wasn't quite used to talking to Natasha and her friends. Shanna walked in secretly pleased to see her sister was unharmed.
"Can you believe this numpty? Sitting on the corridor floor, good thing Ifound him when I did or he'd have ended up run over by the sweet trolley." Shanna said pointing to Quin. He gave his akward smile as Shanna put both her trunk and his away.
"Sit down, this place is small enough." She said to Quin, his choice was sitting next to the strange girl in the corner or the seat next to Natasha. He evetually choose Natasha prefuring to sit with someone he knew would be nice to him, than a girl he didn't even know if she was breathing. Shanna sat next to the odd Slytherin, either not noticing or simply ignoring her and looked at Natahsa.
"So what did I miss?" She asked.
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Kayla

"So Sean and I boarded the train a while ago and we got a nice cozy compartment near the back, and we were there for quite a while," Natasha explained.

"Then suddenly these fat lugs stampeded in and told us to get out," Sean continued where she left off. She smiled at him. "Well, the last thing I want before even getting back to Hogwarts is to get in a fright."

"And I think my dueling skills are rusty," Natasha smiled. "So we decided to leave. And on our way out, this white-haired guy came in--Malfoy or something? Told us he was reserving the compartment for people who weren't Muggle-born and half-blood lovers." She rolled her eyes. Of course, Draco had used a much ruder word to refer to Muggle-borns. "I don't suppose he knows I'm a half-blood, he just couldn't think of anything nastier to say."

Sean shook his head. "Idiot."

"I'm not standing down the next time a Slytherin tries to get to me," Natasha muttered now. She shot a glance at the girl, forgetting she was still there. The girl was now flipping through a magazine, not seeming to hear their conversation.
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lost_dark_soul

Shanna noticed Natasha glance to the corner of the compartment, she looked in the same direction noticing the girl for the first time.
"You should have come and found me, I'd have wiped that smirk of his face." Shanna said now choosing to fully ignore the girl in the corner. She wasn't doing any harm so Shanna was treating her how she treats most people, indiffrently. Quin sighed he often wished he'd got Shanna's courage, but he was thankful she did, she often used it to help him out of sticky situations, mostly situations involving Slytherins and his blood heritage. He was Muggle born and this apparently was great fun to make fun of.
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Kayla

Natasha paused to listen to voices outside the compartment. "God, don't tell me he's followed us!"

She stood up furiously and slid open the door. "Overheard on the train: "...Father actually considered sending me to Durmstrang rather than Hogwarts, you know. He knows the headmaster, you see. Well, you know his opinion of Dumbledore -- the man's such a Mud-blood-lover."

Natasha caught a glimpse of Hermione Granger in the compartment next to theirs, apparently sticking her head out to see if Malfoy was there too. Hermione backed away and slammed her compartment door shut. Malfoy strode by Natasha's door, his nose practically in the air as he passed, bragging.

Hermione Granger was Shanna and Natasha's roommate, along with Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown. Hermione generally never confided in the girls, preferring to hang out with her friends Ron Weasley and Harry Potter. Just the thought of Harry almost made Natasha grin stupidly. Almost.

She sat back down, annoyed. "Slytherins and their pure-blood drivel."

The black-haired girl now looked up from her magazine. "Not all Slytherins are like that blond twig and his bumbling giant friends," she said coolly.

Natasha regarded her carefully, waiting for her to say more. The girl merely raised an eyebrow.

"Slytherin?" Natasha asked, though she knew the answer.

"What do you think?" She didn't break the gaze.

Natasha watched the girl, trying to access her. She felt the girl was doing the same.

"Okay, not all Slytherins are the same," Sean said, just to break the tension. "It's just, the majority are like Malfoy and Parkinson. Even their--your--Head of House has an attitude against Muggle-borns. That's what the house is based off of, isn't it?"

"Yes, that's true. But one can say that showing off is what Gryffindor was based off of," she rose an eyebrow at Natasha and returned her gaze back to Sean, "or that Hufflepuff is where all the misfits go. But those are just...generalizations."

"So, you're not into blood purity?" Natasha asked incredulously.

"No," the girl replied simply. "And Pansy Parkinson makes all of us Slytherin girls look like we're supposed to hang off of a racist blond boy."
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lost_dark_soul

"There are always expections to rules." Quin suddenly spoke up. Shanna was pleasently surprised it showed her guidenece with him was working.
"I'm not brave enough to be Gryffindor." Quin added. Shanna gave her head a shake, her guidence was kind of working.
"Boys like that are only worth ignoring. And I feel sorry for who ever fancies him, I've seen better looking road-kill." Shanna injected.
Bob hooted agreement.
"What's you name then?" Shanna added.
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Kayla

"I'm Alanis Roland," she nods. "And you're the Arkham twins?"

Natasha nodded.

She shrugged. "I don't know who is which." She smiled a bit.

"I'm Natasha."
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lost_dark_soul

"Shanna." Shanna answered simply nodding.
"It's not too difficult to tell the diffrence." Quin said. He was starting to feel more comfortable now. He'd been lucky enough to meet them both indevidually and to him the diffrence was obvious, to him Shanna always seemed to have a small frown on her face like she was constantly concerned about something or simply just needed to have her guard up. Where as Natasha had softer features and had a more thoughtful look about her.

Shanna looked at Natasha with a cheeky smile.
"The diffrence is easy, I'm the better looking twin." She grinned. Looks didn't really mean anything to her, she was simply telling a joke.
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Kayla

Natasha smirked. "Keep telling yourself that, sis," she teased jokingly.

Alanis smiled for the first time in front of these strangers. It was odd, seeing this right in front of her. Sure, she had seen from afar close friends and even close family laughing, joking, teasing. She had never been apart of this. The girls at school stuck together in cliques and Alanis never seemed to belong anywhere. She was always either too hyper and too chatty, or too depressing and quiet. She had personality that varied, depending on who she was around and how comfortable she felt with them. She never felt comfortable with the Slytherin girls, and no other house wanted anything to do with a member of the snake club.

As for family, she had never been close to a family member. Well, she had, but it had been a long time. When her brother--who was a year older than her--went to Hogwarts, everything changed with the two of them.

And here were twins who, despite their differences, seemed to have a gravitational force that created a pull between the two. Like they were two parts of one.
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lost_dark_soul

Quinn smiled also, he found it fastenating how the two reacted around each other, he was close to his three siblings, but there was like a extra closeness between the two girls he couldn't explain, even at times when they weren't speaking to each other there was still closeness between them, almost as if they could read each others mind.


Meanwhile in a office in London sat a blonde 30 something alone at a desk. This was Fiona Summerbee, a employee of the Ministry of Magic, The department for international magical co-oporation. She was busily scribbling with her quill while a bewitched quill scribbled beside her. She felt her work had been tripled since a Death eater attack at the Quidditch World cup and it scarcely looked set to slow down any time soon.
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Kayla

There was a knock at the door suddenly.
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lost_dark_soul

Fiona jumped being so wrapped up in her work it was the last thing she was expecting.
"Come in" She called.
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Kayla

Angelica came in. "I expect the files by the end of the day," she reminded an intern who was passing by the office as she opened the door and stepped inside. She turned and shut the door. She smirked. "Today's the day," she said. "The first day at Hogwarts for the children of many unsuspecting wizards."

She strode over casually to Fiona's desk, wearing satin red, black, maroon and gold kimono robes. She looked powerful and dangerous and there was a certain air of authority to her. Her hair was straight, black, chin-length and framed her face.
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lost_dark_soul

Fiona smiled at Angelica and put down the Quill she was holding (the other one was still writting) and was pleased for the distraction.
"Indeed, if anything they will be surprised." Fiona answered.
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Kayla

She frowned now, sitting on the edge of Fiona's desk. "Have you heard that Alastor Moody from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement has taken the post of Defense teacher? We weren't counting on an Auror being in the castle all year." She sneered. "Then again, the man sees danger everywhere he goes. Just this morning, he called for help. Weasley arrived at his place and he was shouting about hearing a noise and being attacked--there was nothing there, of course." She rolled her eyes. "If he suspects anything from the students this year, it's not likely anyone will take it too seriously."
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lost_dark_soul

"I don't think we have to worry too much. The tournament will keep the lot of them busy. And there's two other school's for him to watch over. I think we will be fine." Fiona reassured Angelica. She didn't think anyone would notice them unless they were shouting from the rooftops.
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Kayla

Angelica smirks, getting the same mental image. "Meanwhile, I have spoken to several ex-Death Eaters about finding and resurrecting their Dark Lord. Some are terrified. Instead of braving Azkaban, they are holding comfortable jobs at the Ministry and renouncing their master. Imagine what Snakeface would say to that."

"I don't believe they expect it's possible for him to come back, though. I'm not so confident in this as they are." She frowned darkly.
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lost_dark_soul

"He's was a powerful wizard so anything is possible. They should do better to remember that." Fiona agreed. She herself was thankfully uninvolved in this mess, she had her own agenda and was biding her time for the right opportunity.
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