Soulmate

***
I sat in the chair in the library paging threw a book by a Muggle writer. It was about vampires and in the story a girl fell in love with one and also in the story, they sparkled. Well, 'dazzled' is the word the author used but basically they were covered in glitter.

"How obscene" I spoke aloud to no one. "I wonder how the vampires are taking this" probably deeply offended, I thought.

It had been weeks since I cast the spell that removed me from the minds of the school. I didn’t talk to anyone, I stayed in the library except for class where I would sit in the back and fitfully be ignored. I avoided the golden trio at all cost because when I ran into them they would look at me as if they recognized me for a moment and then would sneer when they saw the Slytherin emblem on my chest.

I couldn't stand that sneer. It made me so angry and sad. But I couldn't yell at them to cut it out because I made it this way. I made them forget me, I made them hate me.

"And this girl is really quite annoying" I continued reading. "Like pansy only Muggle"

"Talking to yourself?" the voice came from the shadows and I jumped.

"Who’s there?" I demanded, standing up and grabbing hold of my wand.

"Calm down Slytherin" that voice, I know that voice. "I won’t tell anyone you fancy Muggle novels" and then he stepped out of the shadows, Fred my best friend and big brother. Only he doesn't remember that, he doesn't know me.

"What do I care what you tell people?" I asked rolling my eyes as I sat back down and grabbed the book to continue reading.

"Slytherins hate Muggles" he said. "You’ll be laughed out of the house"

"That doesn't exactly sound like a punishment" I said flipping the page. "I hate being stuck around those snobby wankers anyway"

"Really?" he mused. "Then how do you survive every day?

I sighed putting the book aside. "I make myself a ghost. I do not talk, I do not make eye contact and I do not make waves. Which this conversation will bring if one of us does not go away" I said with a pointed look towards his Gryffindor emblem.

"I like you Slytherin" he smiled. "What’s your name?"

"If I tell you will you go away?"

"I suppose"

"In that case" I sighed getting up. "I'm Emily, Emily Raven" I waited for... Something, a flicker of recognition or, anything really. But nothing happened he just smiled and bowed his head slightly.

"It was lovely to meet you Raven" he said before turning and walking away.

***

I thought being a ghost would be easy. Moreover, it was, to a point. However, being hatted, even despised, by people I cared about… that was the worst curse I could think of.

Then the unthinkable happened. I had many classes with Harry and them and I was use to walking the halls with them. Even when I skipped class that day, I would walk with them to their class. One morning I was walking down the hall towards charms class. I was in my street cloths because I wasn’t planning on attending and was mindlessly thinking about my life before this year. I was happy before, now I was anything but.

I rammed right in to the firm chest of someone and felt my wand’s sharp point tear into my gum, and my mouth filled with blood. “Fuck!” I shouted spitting the red liquid onto the grass. “Watch where you’re fucking goi-“ I stopped short as I looked up into wide green eyes and a lightning scar.

“Are you ok?” Hermione asked from behind him and I saw Ron standing there too.

“Um yeah” I lied spitting more blood off into the grass, “it was my fault. I should have watched where I was going”

“I should have too” Harry said picking up my wand from the ground and handing it too me.

“Thanks” I said quickly as I turned to leave.

“Hold on” Harry said grabbing my hand to stop my retreat, “the hospitable wing is over there”

I shifted uneasily, “I- I know”

“Then why are you going the wrong way?” Ron asked raising an eyebrow.

“Honestly?” I asked spitting more blood and they nodded, “because of you three”

“Us?” Hermione asked. “What do you mean?”

I shrugged and shifted again, “I’m not in my robes, so you don’t realize” I said biting my lip. “But I’m an s-s- slytherin” their eyes, immediately turned dark and harry dropped my hand in disgust.

“Why aren’t you in class, slytherin” Ron demanded.

I flinched at his accusing tone, my wand rolling around in my hand, “I was hoping to avoided those, face-“ now, I guess it was my fault for using my wand to gesture towards them , but Harry could have giving me a little bit of credit. My sentence was stopped short buy a sharp pain in my shoulder and waist. I looked down to see two great big gashes on my body and I looked up at harry.

I let out what was almost a hard laugh, “owe” and then I fell forward and blacked out.
However, I was not unconscious. The moment I closed my eyes I saw my body falling into Harry’s arms. “Harry! What did you do?!” Hermione’s shrill voice rung in my ears.

“She’s was going to curse us!” he shouted, “I was defending myself”

“A shield curse is defending yourself” Ron said in a panic, “not slicing her open!”

“It was the first spell that came to mind” he growled picking up my bleeding body. “Come on, we have to get her to the hospitable wing” he started running with me towards, help his thoughts going a thousand miles an hour. ‘What have I done?’

‘You tried to kill an innocent girl who only wanted to go away from three faces of cruel judgment’ I snapped back and he jumped.

“What the hell?” he wondered aloud, “did you hear that?” he asked the others.

“Hear what?” Ron asked, “I didn’t hear anything”

“Harry” Hermione shifted, “she’s bleeding on your shirt”

“I- right” he said as he continued running. ‘Must have imagined it’ I didn’t say anything to this. I was…fading. My focus threw Harry’s eyes was dimming, my pain was gone, or I couldn’t feel it anymore.

“Is that Emily Raven?” a faint voice caught my attention

“Wouldn’t know” Harry muttered with a venom filled mouth. “I don’t associate with Slytherins” a door burst open and I felt warmth hit my skin.

“Oh god” madam Pomphry gasped as I was set on a bed. “what happened?!”

“I thought she was going to curse us” Harry said frantically. “she’s a slytherin!”

“you say that like they are the root of all evil!” she hiss in outrage. “did you know that Merlin himself was a Slytherin?!”

“what?-i- no!”

“well he was!” she shouted. “just because all evil wizards were slytherin doesn’t mean that all Slytherins are evil! And you would do well to remember that Mr. Potter! Now, I want the four of you out of my hospitable wing!”

I felt Madam Pomphry begin to heal me as Harry and his friend rushed from the hospitable wing. Harry –rightfully- was feeling rotten. He felt like he’s failed not only himself but a friend. Like his friend was in there fighting for her life because of him.

“Fred?” Ron asked. “how did you know her?”

“she was in the library” he said as harry looked up from his hands. “she was reading a Muggle novel and talking aloud to herself. Harry, she may be a slytherin… but she hates everything they stand for”

“why is she a slytherin then?” Ron asked. “why not one of the other houses?”

“the way the sorting hat works is a mystery to even the most knowledgeable of wizards” Hermione said. “I couldn’t even begin to understand it”

“what was it she was saying before?” Ron asked. “something about avoiding those faces?”

“our faces” Harry said. “our faces of cruel judgment. I know her now, every time I saw her in class or in the hall… I would glare at her… just for being a slytherin”

“I think we all did Mate” Ron sighed. “did you know that bit about Merlin? Him being a Slytherin… damn. I feel like we lost something”

“we did” Hermione muttered. “our dignities. We are just as bad as them now, judging before we really get to know someone. I feel like I need to take a shower to rinse the self-hate off”

“and how do you think I feel Hermione?” Harry demanded. “I just sliced a girl open because she was a slytherin and I thought she was going to hex us! I mean- Damn!” before any of them could reply to that the sound of someone running down the hall caught their attention. Harry looked up to see Snape running towards them. Harry thought he would run right past him but instead he felt those cold boney fingers wrap around his collar and push him up against the wall.

“if she dies Potter” he growled looking very, very angry. “you’ll have me to answer to… understand?”

“why?” he asked threw clenched teeth. “who is she to you?” Snape didn’t answer him. Only roughly put him down before walking into the hospitable wing. It was then that I heard the gentle coxing of Madam Porphyry’s voice to open my eyes.

“on the other hand” Harry said striating out his shirt. “perhaps Raven is move of a slytherin than we’ve been led to believe”