Candescent

Today was my first day of classes and I have three questions:

1. Why am I so good at everything?

2. Why does Snape show favouritism towards me?

3. And three, why the hell does everybody treat Harry Potter like he’s some kind of saint?

Well the first two were kind of hard to answer off the top of my head, so I decided I would shift them out of my mind and focus on Harry Potter. Not in a stalker-ish way or anything, just as a curious observer.

“Alyssa!” Hermione’s voice broke through my thoughts.

“Yeah?” I responded.
“I was wondering if you could um…help me with this transfiguration homework. It seems that Professor McGonagall thinks I’m some super brain.”

“But, you are.”

“Yeah,” she conceded. “But not as much as they think I am.”

“Alright,” I said, inspiration suddenly forming in my mind. “But only if you help me find out all you can about Harry Potter.”

“Oh sure,” she said, visibly relieved. “Just let me drop these books off in my dormitory and I’ll meet you at five in the library.”

“’Kay,” I replied, sort of overwhelmed by her gratitude.

As Hermione walked past, Draco Malfoy came up behind me.

“Conversing with the muggle-born now are we?” he said.

“What are you, my father?” I countered. “She’s my friend.”

“Then get some new ones,” he replied as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“I guess you wouldn’t know about a thing called loyalty then would you.”

“I know about loyalty. Loyalty to my house and to my family.”

I don’t know how he did it. But he made me feel guilty. For what, I don’t even know.

“Just get out of here Malfoy. Before you end up a piece of burnt toast.”

He laughed loudly at my words, a laughter that echoed right down the corridor. “As if,” he said. “You wouldn’t be able to hurt a fly. I don’t mean in the characteristic sense…I mean that you don’t even have the amount of magic to hurt a fly.”

“You willing to bet your face on that?”

I couldn’t believe it. His hands actually instinctively went to his face. I had to stifle a laugh as his eyes darted to my wand that was already in my hand to Crabbe and Goyle who stood a few feet away.

“You win this time Tyler,” he said, his anger shown by the use of my last name. “Next time I’ll be ready.”

“With sharper words I hope,” I replied. “Or at least a spell.”

He walked off in a huff. I trotted quickly to the Slytherin common room and dropped the books I didn’t need in my dormitory. I walked slowly towards the library, taking a chance to explore. I held a map that one of the senior students had given to me in my right hand and my transfiguration book in my left. Somehow, I still managed to get lost.

“Are you alright?”

I turned around and came face to face with a set of identical red-heads.

“Um…” Wait, these guys were the Weasley twins. I’d been told it probably wasn’t a good idea to trust them. They were known tricksters. But then again…I really was lost.

“I’m kind of looking for the library,” I admitted.

The twins exchanged glances before turning back to me and saying, “Take your first right, second left and then the staircase to the right.”

“Aha,” I said with suspicion. “Nothing else?”

“Nope.”

“Alright then,” I said. “Thanks.”

I walked off, my expression becoming angrier as I realised they were chuckling behind me.

“Jerks,” I muttered, taking the first left instead of right as they had advised me. Strangely enough, I found myself outside the library.

“Excellent,” I said to myself as I walked in. Wow. Did I really just say excellent?

“Alyssa!” Hermione hissed from one of the tables. I hurried to join her.

“Sorry,” I whispered as I sat down. “I got lost and then I had a run in with the Weasley twins and I finally found my way.”

“Well,” Hermione started. “That just means we’ve got less time to do what we need. Profes-“

“I want to know about Harry first,” I interrupted. “Then I’ll help you.”

She frowned, but changed her topic anyway. “Fine,” she said. “What do you know?”

“Nothing,” I said honestly. “I haven’t got any idea about what happens in the wizarding
world. Like you, I was raised as a muggle. All I know is that my parents were most probably a wizard and witch.”

“Wow,” she said. “But didn’t you see anything about him when you went to get your books in Diagon Alley?”

“I didn’t go,” I muttered. “My adoptive mother got all my books and my robes and everything.”

“Oh. Okay then. Do you know who He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is?”

“I’ll assume it’s another name for You-Know-Who?”

“Yeah,” she replied. “He was the darkest wizard of all time. He killed so many people there was almost going to be no one left to defy him. When Harry Potter was one year old, You-Know-Who killed his parents. But when he tried to kill Harry, the curse failed. That’s why Harry is left with a lightning scar upon his forehead.”

I hid my shock, but I was a really hard job. A lightning scar? I hadn’t seen it. Perhaps…possibly…it was like mine. Maybe-

“Alyssa?” Hermione stared at me. “You blanked out for a minute. Are you okay?”

“Er...yeah,” I murmured. “Let’s just get this homework done.”

Hermione’s expression lit up. Crazy child. I mean, who actually likes homework?

An hour later, we had not only finished our homework, but had pretty much learned the theory for the next five lessons of transfiguration.

“Thank you so much Alyssa!” Hermione gushed as we left the library. “You’re the best.”

“No problem.” I smiled as half-hearted smile. Thoughts from an hour ago were still running through my head. “I’ll see you at dinner.”

“Yeah,” Hermione replied, starting to walk away. But she called my name again and asked me one more question that she’d obviously only just remembered.

“Alyssa, you said that your mother got your books and robes…but what about your wand?”

Touchy subject. But hid my slowly forming tears well.

“Dumbledore gave it to me,” I said walking away while still facing her. “He said that it was my mother’s.”