star shopping ✰ d.m.

CHAPTER EIGHT

The morning of the 1st of September, Arabella laid gloomily on her camp bed that was set up in Ginny's room with Crookshanks lying comfortably on her chest, purring away. For the first time ever, she was not excited to return to school, and neither was Ginny, but the difference here was that Ginny was not sulking in her bed about it, but instead, she was packing her trunk as she should have been.

With a frustrated huff, Ginny turned to her older sister, who was relaxing in her bed petting Hermione's cat instead of packing like her. "You know, just because you're in seventh year doesn't mean you don't have to pack," Ginny said to her. "We're going to be late getting on the train if you don't start now."

Without taking her eyes off of Ginny, Arabella grabbed her wand and waved it, causing all of her belongings to place themselves in her trunk. Though, cleaning spells were one area that she had yet to master, resulting in her trunk being quite messy and hardly being able to close properly.

"Bella, that's ghastly."

"Still packed," Arabella said.

"Then I don't want to hear you complaining about not being able to find anything."

"You won't, then."

Rolling her eyes, Ginny continued to pack until there was a light knock on the door and Molly entered. The girls immediately looked up at her and were worried to see that her expression was just short of distraught.

"Mum, what's wrong?" Ginny asked the woman.

"The post just came," Molly said with a sigh, holding up a copy of the Daily Prophet. "There's been some staffing changes at Hogwarts... and you're not going to like them."

Arabella sat up suddenly, dislodging Crookshanks from his comfortable position and causing him to make a noise of surprise. Arabella paid him no mind as she grabbed the newspaper that her mother tossed her and began to read with Ginny sitting down beside her to read as well.

The headline alone was enough to make their hearts drop.

SEVERUS SNAPE CONFIRMED AS HOGWARTS HEADMASTER

"Snape?" Ginny exclaimed. "No! How could this even happen?"

"But... McGonagall was Deputy Headmistress under Dumbledore!" Arabella said. "She was supposed to take over after him! And she did! Why didn't she stay?"

"She was going to, Bella," Molly said. "But unfortunately, when the Ministry fell to You-Know-Who, so did Hogwarts. You know from when that Umbridge woman taught there that the Ministry can step in whenever they please, and the only reason that they usually didn't when Dumbledore was headmaster was simply because he was Dumbledore. And while I agree that Minerva McGonagall is more than capable of the position, it is very obvious what side of this war she is on, and it's not the side You-Know-Who wants the headmaster of Hogwarts to be on."

"And the other teachers? They're just going to let this happen?"

"They've got no choice! It's just like your father still going to work at the Ministry even after it's fallen. Right now, it's either cooperate or..." Molly couldn't bring herself to finish her sentence, but the girls knew what she would have said.

"Headmaster isn't the only position that's been filled," Ginny said. She had been reading while her mother and sister had been talking, and proceeded to read aloud, "'Following the resignation of the previous Muggle Studies teacher, Alecto Carrow will take over the post while her brother, Amycus, fills the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.'" Not recognizing the names of their new professors, the girls looked up at Molly.

"Death Eaters."

Realizing for the first time just how disastrous the school year was bound to be, Arabella and Ginny looked at each other.

"I suggest you finish packing, Ginny. We'll be leaving soon." And with that, Molly left the room, leaving the door cracked behind her.

Ginny did as she was told, resuming packing while Arabella continued to sit on her bed in silence, seemingly lost in her own world. Suddenly, though, she jumped up and rushed to her trunk, throwing it open and beginning to dig through it. Hearing the commotion, Ginny turned to watch.

"Finally gone mad, have you?" she asked. However, she received no response as Arabella got frustrated and pulled out her wand again.

"Accio coin!" Arabella muttered. Instantaneously, the enchanted coin that she and Hermione had worked together to modify in order to communicate Dumbledore's Army meeting dates back in their fifth year emerged from the mess of clothes and textbooks in her trunk and flew into her hand. She looked up at Ginny and said, "Now, here's what we're going to do..."

.｡❅*⋆⍋*∞*｡*∞*⍋⋆*❅｡.

Arabella and Ginny trudged through Kings Cross Station with Molly, missing Arthur because he was at work. They pushed their trolleys, which were much lighter this year because both girls had decided to leave their pets at home as they thought it selfish to bring them back to Hogwarts knowing how unpleasant it was going to be there. They dreaded every step as they got closer and closer to the barrier to Platform 9 3/4, but eventually, they reached it, and had no choice but to go through. On the other side, as expected, was the Hogwarts Express. It looked as it always did yet Arabella did not smile and feel a sudden surge of excitement as she usually did when she saw it. The same could not be said for the new first-years though, who did not know any better. Arabella briefly wondered how many of them were Muggle-borns who would likely be dragged off of the train, but she had to push the thought from her mind as her mother brought her and Ginny into a tight hug.

"Now you two behave this year," she told them, her voice slightly shaky. "I know I tell you that every year and you never seem to listen, but it's more important than ever this time around. I don't want to receive any letters or see any of your professors' heads in my fire telling me that's something's happened to you."

"We'll behave if they behave," Ginny said as Molly let them go, "and you already know how likely that is."

"We'll try, Mum," Arabella said when she saw the tears well in Molly's eyes, "but we can't promise anything."

Once again, Molly pulled her daughters into a hug. "I love you girls so much," she said to them.

"We love you, too, Mum."

[word count: 1082]
[written: 11/30/20]
[published: 11/30/20]