The Raven and the Snake

The First Book

When the bus started to move, it went off with a bang. The bus moved like a rocket, not bothering to keep properly to roads. Anything that might've been squashed by its progress simply hopped out of its way, the same way as the brick wall leading to Diagon Alley.

The bed that Ariadne had taken a seat on, rolled across the interior of the bus and bumped into other beds. She closed her eyes so she could focus on her breathing, the sight outside the window made her want to gag.

She was hardly the only passenger on the bus, but the others were either as used to it as the conductor who managed to remain standing by keeping his legs spaced like a surfer, or were green with nausea.

"How old are you, sweetheart?" The conductor asked.

Ariadne had had a growth spurt in the last year. She was taller and her features were becoming more womanly. Still, she was far too young for this man to be looking at her the way he was.

She curled her lip. "Thirteen."

He let out a long whistle. "Why're you headed to Hogsmeade? Shouldn't you be going to school with the rest of the kids next week?"

She glared at him. "Family."

He made a sort "aww" noise. She wrinkled her nose and very obviously closed her eyes. The rocking of the bus was like a ship on choppy water. Whenever a stop came, the whole bus gave a jerk that she thought should give the standing conductor whip lash.

Ariadne was more than happy to get off the bus when her stop finally came. She murmured a thanks and sincerely hoped that they would get a new conductor soon when she hopped out. The little walk to the school wasn't unpleasant. Normally, she'd be on a carriage being pulled by a thestral.

She'd seen them the previous year, but they hadn't frightened or confused her. It was just one of those things that came with the wizard world. Few others had noticed the bizarrely fleshless horses with bat wings. She had dim memories of what they were, but she'd had to consult her magical monster books to be sure.

It had been sort of sad when she'd realized the reason she could see them was because of her mother's death. Her mother would have been thrilled to see the horses herself even if they were eerie.

Dawn was coming so the long trail up to the school gates was being lit slowly, casting long shadows. It was quite beautiful. She could see the distant form of the castle that was surely quiet with hardly more than a skeleton crew at this time of year.

Ariadne smiled when she spotted the house elf waiting for her at the gate. Merry quickly helped her in and attempted to pry Ariadne's bag from her grip.

"I can take that for you," Merry said, smiling widely.

Ariadne chewed her lip for a moment. "I don't suppose... you could hide it?"

This confused Merry. "Why would I hide it? Hide it where?"

Ariadne shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably. "I have a sense that I might be... getting expelled from Hogwarts or something. They might be planning to send me away."

Merry's eyes went wide, horrified. "No, they won't be doing that, Miss!"

"They might, Merry. Have you ever seen another student show up like this?"

Merry shook her head violently, her bat ears flapping, tears springing to her bulbous eyes. "They wouldn't do that, Miss!"

Ariadne knelt down so she could be level with the little elf. "Please, Merry. Hide my bag for me. I need to be able to grab it if I have to leave again quickly."