Annabel Lee

Severus’s Point of View

"Come on Severus," my mother ushered me along with the current of people towards the train. I looked over at her and as she gave a short smile and I nodded. We walked straight through the middle of Platforms 9 and 10, and we stopped right in front of my train. "Have a good year sweetie. I'm sure your father would say the same thing," she said bending over and giving me a hug. I grimaced as I hugged back sluggishly.

"Yeah right." She pulled away and looked like she was thinking and then she sighed.

"Well, I guess you're right," she mumbled and gave a short smile, distracting me while she pulled her coat that had slipped to reveal a light purple mark back up on her shoulder. Then she giggled kissing my forehead, which I wiped quickly as the Gryffindor crew walked past and snickered. "Have a good year." I nodded quickly stepping onto the train. My black hair acted as a curtain as I rushed into the nearest open compartment and slammed it shut. The corner of my lip curled up slightly as I leaned into my seat.

Another school year meant no more home until summer.

I pulled out my potions book and started reading through it, making small corrections and comments with my quill.

Properly brewed, the Polyjuice Potion allows the drinker to transform their physical attributes temporarily into another's. Ingredients include:

1. 12 Lacewing flies
2. 1 oz. crude Antimony
3. 4 Leeches
4. 16 scruples of Fluxweed
5. 3 drams of Sal Ammoniac (crystallized ammonia, made liquid)
6. Knotgrass
7. 1 pinch of powdered horn of a bicorn (lunar extracted)
8. Shredded skin of boomslang
9. Filings and rasplings of Salpeter, Mercury and Mars.
10. Extract of The-Transfigured-Being-To-Be (DNA)

The fluxweed and horn must be selected picked at full moon, and the Lacewing flies stewed for-

The door to the compartment opened and my eyes flickered up. There stood a girl half-way hiding behind the doorway. She had light blonde hair that frayed out messily, particularly at her bangs. Most of her eyes was hidden behind them. She didn't move, causing me to I scowl in annoyance.

"Can I help you?" I asked my, patience thinning. She jumped visibly and stepped forward a little ringing her wrists. I noticed her arms and legs were an odd combination: pale, thin, and long. She fidgetted for a while before looking at me, eyeing the empty side of the compartment, then turning back at me. I turned pink for not getting it earlier, though it wasn't noticeable. "Sit where you want," I grumbled lowering my head to my text again. I sneaked a peek to see her smile gratefully and sit down in her seat skittishly. She sat down with her things and gazed out the window smiling a bit.

I wonder if she can even talk. I thought as she pulled out a book like I had and put her nose in it. My eyes glanced over the cover until I'd memorized. It was a book of poems by some writer by the name of Poe. I read the first few lines.

The skies they were ashen and sober;
The leaves they were crisped and sere -
The leaves they were withering and sere;
It was night in the lonesome October
Of my most immemorial year:
It was hard by the dim lake of Auber,
In the misty mid region of Weir -
It was down by the dank tarn of Auber,
In the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir.

For a muggle he wasn't so bad a writer. The girl looked up from her book startled, because apparently I had leaned in so close to read her book that my hair had fell against her cheek. I stumbled back and stared at a scratch in the arm rest. Her smile lifted up again as she went back to reading. I waited for her to start calling me names or making fun of my greasy hair, but received none. I sat up and shifted a little in my seat so I would look more casual, which didn't work so well I might add.

I cleared my throat a little and her gray eyes peeked through her bangs. My face flushed with color again. "Uh, my name's Severus by the way." She blinked a few times before registering what I said and her smile dropped, jumping a little. She must have been thinking I implied she was rude for not introducing herself yet, or speaking for that matter. She bobbed her head up and down, from her lap to my face a couple times, and each time she faced me she smiled, but each time she lowered her head she looked nervous.

I had to admit, it was more than slightly amusing. She kept on doing it though, so I snapped a little.

"Are you going to tell me yours or what?" Yeah way to go Severus, confirm her suspicions of you being a weirdo and call her rude. When I got the courage to look at her, despite flinching she smiled lightly.

"A...Annabelle," she said cutely, tucking a piece of her blonde hair behind her ear. I felt the corner of my lips twitch up slightly, but only slightly before I went back to a blank slate. We stayed silent for the rest of the time until the train ride ended. I grabbed my trunk and owl and walked out while Annabelle pushed her things out the door. The giant that escorted me and the other first years across the lake last year now watched for the new batch, which Annabelle joined.

"Hey, Snape!" I turned and saw Regulus Black waving me over from a carriage. "Come on." I made my way over and got in.

"Hello, Snape," Lucius Malfoy said calmly while his girlfriend next to him gave a nod. I met Lucius and his girlfriend Narcissa Black last year, along her cousin Regulus Black. Really they were the only friends I had besides Lily, and she was too busy with Gryffindor most the time. Once we got inside we made our way over to our table in the Great Hall. That’s when Regulus struck up conversation; telling me about his summer, and how he spent most of it annoying his blood traitor brother Sirius.

"I swear he wouldn't shut the hell up about being in 'The-Oh-So-Grand-House-Of-Gryffindor'," he rolled his eyes spitting out the phrase. But his grimace turned into a firm smile. "Mother fixed him real quick though." I watched him laughed until I was bored and turned my head over my shoulder. The first years were piling in, and Annabelle was staring so at the ceiling in such a daze, she nearly tripped over. A soft smile playing across her lips though. I wanted to look away quickly, feeling my skin give a small shiver, but couldn't.

"Checking out the new first years Severus?" Narcissa laughed and I rolled my eyes finally ripping myself away from her. She noticed and grinned looking over my shoulder. "Merlin's Beard, look at the blonde one! She looks like a skeleton," she accidentally shouted, I groaned as half the other students looked over, including Annabelle who's face had turned a new shade of white knowing they were talking about her. Then as she spotted us, she turned bright red looking down at her shoes. I felt a twinge of pity for her.

"Why do you keep staring at her, you have a crush on her or something?" Regulus asked smirking.

"No," I hissed quietly before getting calm again. "I just met her on the train is all." Lucius laughed again.

"So you do like her. What's her name?" he asked and I sighed.

"None of your business," I snapped. Narcissa rolled her eyes and snorted.

"Oh our little Snape is in love. Watch out, don't let her steal your heart, who knows where she's been," she chanted and the others laughed in chorus. Before I could snap back, to deny it of course, Professor McGonagall stepped in front of the first years.

"Now when I call your name, you will come forth. I shall place the sorting hat on your head and you will be sorted into your houses." The first years all went rigid and Narcissa snickered.

"Beth Carlson!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Matt Smithsonian!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Kyle Richards!"

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Lacy Hackstead!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Bloody gits," I heard Regulus mutter. We all agreed and spent the rest of our time insulting Gryffindor students.

"Annabelle Emaciare!"

Narcissa giggled as I moved my black hair out of the way to see Annabelle step up onto the stool. She pushed her knees together and clicked her heels nervously. The whole room had gone quiet; other students had caught notice of the slightly strange looking girl too.

"Hm, a great mind, great indeed. Intelligent, mature beyond your years, willing to stick up for anyone close to you. An optimist, despite everything. How nice." At this pause she had turned a light pink and I smirked. "But oh where to put you..."

Annabelle was whispering something to the hat, who whispered back instead of his normal shouting. We all leaned in to hear.

"Strange... you want that... doesn't seem... not ounce of their..."

A few moments later and he cleared his throat (do hats have throats?).

"Honestly? Fine, you'll be in.... SLYTHERIN!" he shouted and our table cheered like we did for all the other Slytherin. Annabelle smiled again before popping off the stool and sitting at the front of the table with us and the prefects.

"Hi I'm Narcissa Black, fourth year. And this is Lucius Malfoy, same year as me," she said leaning over to her. She nodded meekly and smile. Then Regulus looked at her and grinned mischievously.

"Name's Regulus Black." When Annabelle looked a little confused looking at Narcissa then him he shrugged. "We're cousins. Anyways I'm a second year, same as Severus but you two have already met," he chuckled and Annabelle and I each blushed.

"Regulus!"

"Greetings all first years and students who have been here before, I am glad to welcome you all," Dumbledore interrupted me glancing at me with his shiny blue eyes. "Now that you all are sorted, before the feast I would like to go over the rules. No students are allowed in the Forbidden Forest, all..." I forgot about my anger and sighed, beginning to zone out and pulled out a book putting it on my lap under the table.

"Would you just look out those idiots!?" I looked up to see Regulus glaring at the Marauders across the hall.

"And you have to deal with them most don't you?" Lucius asked casting his eyes over at me. I bit the inside of my cheek and snarled lightly. He smirked at my answer though. Those idiots, all they were were arrogant bullies.

Twits.

"You agree, right Annabelle?" Narcissa asked still sneering, but no one answered. "Annabelle?" Annabelle was so engrossed in her book she didn't look up till much later. Quickly she put her head down when she saw us staring. Lucius grinned at this.

"Ok first lesson as Slytherin, learn to hate all Gryffindor. Just look at the group over there. Just a bunch of blood traitors, freaks, and mudbloods." Immediately Annabelle sat up a little bit more and pushed her bangs up so they wouldn't cover her eyes. I found myself almost getting lost in them before stopping myself. Her gaze softened a little and she smiled lightly. None of the others noticed, so Regulus spoke up.

"Sick, right?" I saw Annabelle turned to us and then nod hesitantly. He frowned light at this. "You really don't talk much do you?" he asked slightly disturbed and she smiled nodding.

"Well let the feast begin!" Dumbledore finished and mounds of food appeared on our golden plates. The room erupted in cheers and everyone began to eat. I grimaced at some of the others eating, disgusting. I turned to Annabelle who was staring at all the food, her gray eyes completely wide and looking at the splendors. I smirked a little and reached over grabbing a biscuit.

"You might want to clean the drool from your chin," I muttered taking a bite and she rubbed her chin quickly before she picked up a small piece of chicken and looked it over before biting into it carefully. Then she smiled.

It was the biggest smile I'd seen her have all day. Her teeth were straight and white, perfectly in line no matter how you looked at it, and her pink lips didn't get too thin as they formed a grin. An odd sensation hit my stomach as I snapped out of my dream like state and found myself smiling as well.

I can't possibly like her, can I?

I stopped and looked at Annabelle again, who seemed to be in her own little heaven while she ate excitedly, and scowled. I had had one crush on Lily, and that had turned out disastrously. With a sigh I took a gracious sip of my water.

I hate it when Narcissa's right.