Change - James F. Potter

chapter 5: Who Doesn't Like Pranks?

Cassie ate as much as her stomach could hold, which turned out not to be too much considering her underlying nerves about her parents.

"Hey Cassie, are you okay? You look a little pale" Lily Evans asked, inspecting her paled features.

Cassie gulped, "yeah I'm fine. I was just having flashbacks to Potter's horrid singing." This seemed to please the redhead and she nodded her head and laughed.

Cassie looked down to see the dissected remains of her chocolate cake. Scooting the crumbs around the plate with her fork, Cassiopeia contemplated what to do about her parents. For years she wanted nothing more than to leave them forever, but now that she was given the chance, she wasn't sure if she could. She wanted to make her own decisions, but was she brave enough to? Could she really walk up to her parents and tell them no when they only accepted yes? And how could she leave Regulus? Sirius even. Although she felt her twin would feel the same as her.

The threat of her parents loomed overhead as the feast came to a close and McGonagall instructed the prefects to guide the first years to their common rooms.

Cassiopeia stood from the bench in the great hall and reached to grab Sirius' hand only to find that he and Potter had run to the front of the group. She felt even more scared than before. If she didn't have Sirius, then who did she have? She felt so alone that she wanted to curl up in a ball and cry. Then she remembered something the sorting hat had told her. My dear, if you were any braver, you would be a lioness. Surely if the sorting hat had said so, it must be true, she thought. With her heart still hammering in her chest, she took a deep breath.

Warm fingers interlocking with her own caused her to jump. She looked over to see Lily with a calming smile on her face. Without saying a word, she squeezed her hand and began guiding the pair to follow the group to the Gryffindor common room.

The group of eleven-year-olds stopped outside of a portrait portraying a fat lady wearing something resembling a toga. It looked as if she had been singing because she was looking quite angrily towards a glass that had been slightly cracked. Great, she thought, another James Potter is just what I need.

The girl prefect slapped the boy prefect on the arm for laughing at a joke Potter had made and began addressing the first years.

"Welcome to your first year at Hogwarts! For those of you who do not know who I am, I am Angelina Findler. You are all more than welcome to come to me with any questions you might have. To get into the common room, you must tell the fat lady the password. This week's password is Jabberjay (whoever gets this reference, I love you). As soon as Findler said the password, the portrait swung open and the students swarmed into the common room.

The walls were painted a beautiful shade of crimson with hints of gold. Along one wall was a fireplace, that had several couches and chairs surrounding it. Each couch had cushions that looked perfect to cuddle up with and have a pillow fight with. On the wall adjacent to the fireplace were bookshelves filled with books and treasures other students had left. Towards the left of the portrait hole were several windows. Each window had its own window seat with a view of what looked to be the quidditch pitch. At the end of the common room were two staircases.

"Now, you will all have time to explore the common room later. For now, we'll go over the rules. Over there on the bulletin board is where the password to enter will be posted. Remember to check this often, cause the password will change every week. Do not share this password with anyone from any of the other houses. On the left is the girl's dormitory and the boys are on the right. Boys are now allowed in the girl's dormitory and we ask that girls try to stay out of the boys as well. You will find your trunks have already been sent to your rooms. Outside of the doors is a plaque that has five names on it. Find the room with your name and get settled in. Remember, classes, start tomorrow bright and early so don't stay up too late!"

Findler dismissed the students leaving Cassie and Lily to find their dorms. Throughout Findler's introduction and instructions, Cassie was looking at her brother. He seemed completely at home, only he was without her. He had not so much as made eye contact with her since the feast. Did he not love her anymore? Had he decided that he was disappointed over her getting Gryffindor? Whatever the case was, his actions had left her feeling alone. It had always been Cassie and Sirius against the universe and now it felt like only half of her was left to fight.

The two girls made it up the crowded staircase and began the search for their dorms.

"Lily!" Cassie shook her companion's hand excitedly, "Look! We're are in the same dorm!" Cassie read the bronze plaque that had five names on it.

Cassiopeia Black

Lily Evans

Alice Fortescue

Marlene Mckinnon

Dorcas Meadows

Lily was overjoyed over the fact that the girls knew the majority of their dormmates and quickly opened the door. Inside were five four-poster beds with crimson curtains and red and gold bed sheets. Cassie found her trunk at the foot of the bed closest to the window. She muttered a silent prayer of thanks cause being near the window meant she could gaze up at the stars just like she used to do with Sirius when they were younger.

The three remaining girls quickly entered the dorm. Marlene was over the moon to see that she had been paired with Cassie, someone she had deemed to be a great friend in the making.

"This year is gonna be so fun! We can paint each other's nails, explore the castle, play pranks-" the excited blonde was cut off by a scoffing redhead.

"Now why would we do that? Playing pranks is such a juvenile thing to do."

Both Cassie and Marlene looked at each other with wide eyes. Lily didn't like pranks? Who didn't like pranks? Cassie and Sirius had played their fair share of pranks as little kids, most of them being on Kreacher, the dreadful house elf. Their parents, however, did not approve so the majority of their schemes ended the twins in their rooms with a new set of bruises and no dinner. It did not take away the joy they found in pranking though. Once after reading a muggle fairytale about peas and mattresses, they had placed a pea under their mother's mattress resulting in three sleepless nights from Walburga. It just proved how highly she thought of herself.

"I'm totally down to do all that and more" Cassie whispered into Marlene's ear as Lily began to fold her socks. As much as Cassie enjoyed Lily, she had to have some sort of adventure in her life to keep her sane.

Marlene winked at her and went to unpack her trunk. Cassie followed in her example. Since the sun had long set, she could make out nearly every star in the night sky. As she leaned against the window, she could make out Sirius, a gentle reminder of his promise to her all those years ago, that the night sky was still shining. However, near Sirius was also Orion. Reminding her that her parents were also there. They would surely be mad about her being placed in Gryffindor. One could only assume that one of the snakes had sent them a letter regarding the sorting.

Her parents would always serve as a heavyweight on her shoulders unless she ran away, but where would she run to? Could she really leave her family? Even though they were horrible people, they were still blood. Cassiopeia was not sure if she could leave Regulus either. He was too pure for the family he had been given. He did not deserve any punishment, which is why Cassiopeia had taken it upon herself to try and keep him as safe as possible. She wouldn't let him get hurt as long as she was around and she wouldn't be around if she ran away.

The glass of the window was cool against her skin which helped calm her nerves. If the sorting hat said she was brave, then she must be. Even though Cassie felt anything but brave, she knew she had to, for her brothers.

.... so that took a long time. I had this chapter in my drafts for a long time but life happened and I never got around to finishing it. Sorry it is so short compared to previous chapters. My hope is to regain my motivation and write more of this story. I can't say that updates will be predictable, but they will be coming!
Goodbye for now and all stay safe :)

*edit 11/19/20 - guys Grammarly is really stinking awesome *