Descendant of Merlin (Severus Snape) Book 1: Anger and Awe

Lunch with Ravenclaws

The next morning I woke up and showered. I cast a charm to dry my hair and ran a brush through it. It came a few inches past my shoulders. I applied a little bit of eyeliner and mascara that made my eyes pop. At a glance they were green, but if you looked closely you could see the grey. My eyes were my best feature in my opinion.

With the addition of a little foundation and my uniform, I deemed myself ready for class. I wasn't real big on make-up. After gathering my books I left through the Slytherin common room and headed on my way to Transfigurations.

When I entered the class the Gryffindors glared at me because of the Quidditch match the evening before. I just smiled as I took my seat beside Penelope Deveraux. She had transferred from Bauxbaton last year, but she wasn't a snob so we got along fairly well even though she was in Hufflepuff.

After Transfigurations I had a free hour so I went for a walk by the Black Lake. This year was sad because I only had two classes with Lynx and one with Allistor. I walked to a deeper part of the lake and ran my fingertips over the water's surface. A few moments later a watery head broke through the surface.

"Hello Isabella Marie Fellstone," the mermaid's voice rasped scratchily. I knew that if I held my head under the water her voice would be beautiful and filled with music, but I wasn't stupid enough to be within a mermaid's reach.

Mermaid's are among the magical creatures that like me for some odd reason. Only this one younger mermaid would actually interact with me though. The others didn't approve, but they didn't try to drown me so all was well.

"Hello Mendriataura," I greeted cheerily. She took in a mouthful of water and held it in the back of her throat to make her voice a bit less scratchy.

"How are things in the realm of land-dwellers?" she asked. Now I could hear a slight musical lilt to her voice thanks to the water.

"Good, we won a quidditch match yesterday," I told her happily. I had explained quidditch to her months ago when we first arranged that I would meet with her once every two weeks. She still didn't quite understand the game or why it amuses me, but she listened with half interest when I talked about it. It was the closest thing to true politeness the Merfolk seemed capable of showing.

"That is pleasing to hear. I shall have a new sister soon," she said flicking her tail. I was hit with a shower of water as her powerful tail briefly broke the surface of the lake. All mermaids called each other sister. How they reproduced I had never gained the confidence to ask. I beamed at her.

"How exciting!" I clapped. She eyed my strangely, as if I was a creature she had never seen before.

"Do all of your kind celebrate the bringing forth of new members of your species?" she asked coolly. My expression dropped a bit, and I looked at her in confusion.

"Of course, do you not?" I asked curiously.

"New life in our prey is good. They must reproduce for we Merfolk to survive, but when more Merfolk are brought forth that means less food and more competition. We frown upon merchildren being brought up. Many merchildren never survive past adolescence as adult Merfolk often attack them if they are left alone," she explained. My eyes watered in horror. I knew that Mendriataura was barely considered an adult mermaid.

"So you're lucky to be alive," I breathed out quietly. Mendriataura's sleek shoulders shrugged delicately.

"Perhaps, or perhaps those that do not make it are the lucky ones. I must go now. Be well Isabella Marie Fellstone," with a wave she flipped backwards and disappeared beneath the murky water. I waved at her as she went before standing to my full height.