Moonspell (Harry Potter/Twilight Crossover)

Chapter Three:

CHAPTER THREE:

Breakfast the next morning was a quiet affair. Charlie sat across the table from me and read his newspaper while I ate my cereal, pausing only to feed bits of toast to Griselda, who had actually deigned to gift us with the rarity of her presence and was perched up on the back of the chair beside me.

After I finished eating Charlie said goodbye to me and wished me luck and I retreated to the bathroom to shower. As I dried my hair, my eyes crept across to the mirror to examine my appearance with a critical eye. I had no idea how I was supposed to pull off the whole Phoenix look– I was about as far from 'tan, blonde and sporty' as you could get; I'd been born with the sort of pale, ivory skin that spoke of spending very little time in the sun and living in Britain hadn't helped. I didn't even have the excuse of blue eyes or red hair– no, my hair was long, straight and dark brown and my eyes were brown too, though they were a few shades lighter then my hair; closer in colour to chocolate or chestnuts then mahogany.

As I peered closer in the mirror, the insecure teenage part of me wished I could blame the light for my sallow-looking reflection. My skin could be pretty, but the stress I was under had made me thinner and look pallid, and in the mirror my eyes appeared too big in a face that seemed too skinny. I sighed and watched as my breath fogged up the mirror. Great.

Abandoning the mirror, I dragged a brush through my freshly dried hair then made my way back to my bedroom, moving robotically as I dressed in a pair of jeans, thick woollen socks and a warm, light-blue sweater.

I couldn't resist pulling my Ravenclaw pin out of my trunk, wanting some piece of the school I loved– no, the world I loved– to hold on to, and discreetly slid it into place next to one of the pearly buttons of the sweater.

An anxiety I couldn't quite place was pulsing through me and it took me a minute or two to figure out that I was actually nervous. I almost laughed out loud with the realisation– how could I possibly be anxious about starting muggle high school when I was currently on the hit-list of You-Know-Who thanks to both my blood status and my friendship with various 'Undesirables'?

"Don't be stupid, Bella." I told myself sternly before locating my new book-bag filled with the school supplies and placed my wand inside.

There. I was ready.

(I really, really wasn't)

-

-

It was drizzling outside but not enough to soak me through immediately as I reached for the house key that I knew Charlie always kept hidden for me under the eaves by the door and locked up the house before hurrying over to my truck.

Inside was nice and dry and very clean, though the tan upholstered seats smelled faintly of tobacco, gasoline and peppermint.

The truck's engine started quickly as I turned the key but very loudly. Well, a truck this old was bound to have a flaw, I reasoned. The radio worked when I tried it, though, which was definitely a bonus.

Finding the local high school wasn't difficult as Charlie had driven us past it the day before, after our shopping trip. I was glad he had, as it wasn't immediately obvious it was a school– it looked more like a collection of matching houses built with maroon-colored bricks. Then again, I supposed Hogwarts didn't really look like a school either, so I couldn't really judge.

I parked in front of the first building, which had a small sign over the door reading Front Office. No one else was parked there, so I was pretty sure it was off limits but decided I would get directions inside instead of circling around cluelessly in the rain.