EVERGLADES, pansy parkinson

i. other monsters

I. other monsters

The Hogwarts Express sways side to side as it throttles full force down the tracks, the Scotland highlands flying by in a blur of green. A group of first years do an excited jog down the aisle, flitting past the compartments occupied by the older kids — either ignorant to or blissfully unaware of the heavy atmosphere that threatens to strangle them all. Their shrunken shadows pass by quickly and the train rocks abruptly to the left causing one of the brats to stumble and bump carelessly into one of the many sliding doors.

It jostles loudly, but doesn't budge from its closed position and no one enters. The commotion on the other side is what eventually causes the lone girl inside to perk up, seemingly awaiting for something, or anything, else. But when she is met with only their rambunctious giggles growing distant and the low purr of the furry animal in her lap, she deflates back into her cushioned seat.

Aside from her, the small space is empty. The feline stretches slightly and its mouth opens wide with a yawn before it settles back down lazily, curling inwards and tucking its face under its paws.

Apollo had originally been Yumi's — she could recall the giddy way her sister had acted when she ran ahead of her in Diagon Alley all those years ago, pressing tiny hands to the window pane to get a better look at the kittens running amuck inside. The shop owner had peered down at the pair of them fondly, lifting a tiny and very docile Apollo up from the playpen so she could hold him. Yumi, ever the gentle one, cradled the fluffy cream colored cat like one would a newborn human.

"What about you, Issie?" She had asked, suddenly sullen with a frown painting her doll like face. Apollo reached up with two paws much bigger than his body and toyed with the strands of inky black hair that fell past her collarbones.

An eleven year old Iseul had decided she wanted an owl instead. Shrugging nonchalantly in response, opening her mouth to remind her sister of her wishes, when the shop owner spoke up.

The bubbly man leaned over the playpen in search of something as he offered over his shoulder a very confident and joyful, "Well he is a twin too."

Her words died worthlessly on her tongue when the owner stood straight from the pen, muttering something unpleasant under his breath as he turned towards them once more. By the scruff of its neck, a scrawny cat wiggled and swatted angrily at the owner. Its cream fur was similar to Apollo's, yet looked dull in comparison and matted in some parts.

Truth be told, the cat had looked sickly even then.

But Yumi had squealed in childish delight, practically jumping up and down. "That's perfect! We are twins too." She had stated happily, as if it hadn't already been devastatingly obvious to anyone who even spared them half a millisecond of a glance. "Apollo and Artemis. They'll be best friends forever."

Begrudgingly, Iseul had reached for her new pet. The pest seemed to assess her with narrowed eyebrows, did cats even have eyebrows? Artemis had felt uncomfortable and bony in her arms as they paid with the sack of coins they'd both been given for their school supplies.

As fate would have it, Artemis had actually been sick. She'd made it only a month before she'd passed from a parasite, they presumed she'd been removed from her mother far too soon and while Apollo thrived independently, she had not done the same. Her mother had lovingly caressed her back when they swaddled the tiny kitten in a soft cloth to be buried in the back yard — a runt, her father had called Artemis, it was only a matter of time.

Back then too, Iseul had wondered if that applied to humans too. But whenever she looked at Yumi, thirteen minutes younger than her and smaller in stature, she didn't quite see how that could be true. Not for them at least.