"Well done everyone. This is the last practice before next term. I wish you all a merry Christmas and encourage you practice all I have taught you over the break." I announced to the Thunderbird quidditch team.
I had realized that as much as I begged my father to let me play, it has come to my realization that it has been too long since I had even touched a broom and I was much better at coaching than playing quidditch. It was difficult to convince them to let me coach them, but they haven't regretted allowing it.
What happened to Elizabeth? She tried to tell the head mistress that I assaulted her, but I convinced her that Elizabeth hit her head many times and probably just remembered me running to her to try to stop her fall, but I didn't make it on time.
I had joined the dueling club and brewing club and I was the best student in both of the clubs; I dont mean to brag or anything. Actually, I do. I'm the best. I've always been the best and I will always be the best.
I made my way to the common room to pack my things. I made sure every little thing was in my trunk. I changed from my uniform into black leggings and a black jean skirt with rips, a dark green long sleeved top and I pulled on my emerald green cloak that I haven't been able to wear in what felt like forever. I played with the emerald ring on my right middle finger as I walked to the washroom to collect my few toiletries. While I was in there, I fixed my high ponytail and moved the clip of my necklace to the back of my neck. I looked at the serpent pin on my cloak from when I was back at Hogwarts. After all of my studying of apparition, I knew I was ready to actually begin to practice back at the house in Ohio. I walked back to the bedroom and placed my toiletries in my trunk. I made sure my Ilvermorny wand was in the trunk and my Hogwarts wand was in my pocket.
"You understand that you can leave things here over the break? You'll be coming back to get them when you get back." Persephone told me.
"I don't need your attitude." I snapped at her.
I closed my trunk and carried it down to the lounge.
"Looking good, Snape!" A boy's voice called to me, followed by some cat calls from other boys.
I turned to see Heath Shadowend, Cullen Gnash and Kaspar Dukes approaching me.
"Good evening boys. Gnash, I see you're all cleaned up from quidditch practice. I thought that was going to be the last time I'm going to see you." I told Cullen.
"Yeah and it's probably going to be the last time you see me before your boyfriend steals you from me for dinner." He said with a smirk.
"Vexx isn't my boyfriend. He's just a boy." I told him.
"Tell that to Vexx." Heath said, making the other boys laugh.
"I know it hurts him, but he'll suck it up." I told them.
"Ouch, that's a burn!" Kaspar exclaimed, slapping Cullen's shoulder.
"So do you give your favorite quidditch students a kiss before you leave for the Christmas break?" Cullen asked, taking a step forward.
"Don't make me hex the bloody crap out of you, Gnash." I warned him, pulling out my wand from my pocket.
He threw his hands in the air and took a step back. I laughed.
"Okay, but what about a hug for your friends?" He asked.
"What friends? I only have one here and he's currently not in the room." I told him.
Kaspar announced another burn.
"Then what am I to you, Snape?" He asked me.
"I'm your coach. Bow down." I told him.
Heath snorted and patted his friend's shoulder. It was his turn to announce yet another burn from me.
"Stop harassing Raven, guys." Vexx's voice called from behind the guys.
"Well if it isn't Snape's knight to the rescue." Heath announced.
"I don't think she needs a knight to rescue her. She's able to take care of herself." Vexx told them.
I stood there proudly, but I had to say something.
"And I don't think I need someone to speak for me either, Vexx. I can speak for myself." I told him.
"Damn I keep forgetting that she's the brave lady who never needs help and is never scared of anything." Kaspar said.
"Who says I'm not scared of anything?" I asked him.
The boys all exchanged glances with each other.
"Okay then, Snape? What are you afraid of?" Heath asked.
I thought for a moment. I was afraid of werewolves, but that wasn't the answer they were expecting. I looked down at my wand. What did they want to hear? I gave the wand a small flick.
She's going to say something rational like a dangerous animal or something. Heath thought. I gave the wand another flick.
I bet it's like death. She's going to say death and I'm going to be disappointed. Cullen thought. I flicked the wand for the last time.
She's doesn't have a lot of friends. She kind of avoids large groups as much as she can unless she's bragging about herself or showing off in front of the class like our first charms class of the year. Kaspar thought.
Then it struck me. I knew of one thing that would surprise them.
"I'm afraid of being by myself. I'm scared of ending up alone." I told them.
They all looked at me like it was as if I was lying or something.
"It's true. I find and commit to one person in return for their commitment. That is their way of promising not to leave me alone. Which is why I have Vexx everywhere I go around here. Without him, I'll admit, I am afraid because something in my brain tells me that I have been abandoned and left alone with no one to turn to." I explained.
They were all dumbfounded. It made me laugh at them.
"Don't all of you look so perplexed." I laughed.
"Even though you're a cold person who beats people until they're broken and next to dead, you're still afraid of being alone?" A girl's voice asked from the stairs.
I looked over to see Elizabeth. She had just recently gotten her arm out of the sling after I lost my temper for the second time.
"So I've messed up, get over it." I snapped at her.
"You are an evil little maggot!" She yelled at me, storming over to the group.
"That's my attempt at an apology, take it or leave it." I said flatly, rolling my eyes.
"I'm not going to miss you over the break." She glared.
"Is that what you came to tell me? Because I couldn't care less if you're going to miss me or not." I hissed at her.
"I wasn't planning on saying anything, but then I heard that you're afraid of something and I had to butt in. That's what we do right? We butt in on other people's private business?" She asked me.
"Don't provoke me, Cane, or I bloody swear to Merlin." I threatened.
"Do you do that in Britain too? You do something wrong, someone tries to get the proper disciplinary act and then they get told that they remember things wrong because they 'hit their head'?" She asked angrily.
"Don't be stupid. You're the first. I wouldn't to that to the people that I share a home with and I sure wouldn't do that to any my friends. Something that you aren't."
"What do you understand about friendship? All I've seen you do is reel people in, play with them like dolls, then stab them in the back."
"Right. I'm the queen of letting people down and breaking them to pieces, but you know what? They come back for me. No matter how much I disappoint them. No matter how much I reel them in, play with them like dolls and stab them in the backs, they still stay with me. They come back for me. I don't really understand it, but I guess that just called being a part of a friendship." I explained to her.
"Then why don't you act like your friends?" She asked me.
"Because I am my own person. There is only one version of them and I can't be it. I wish I could be like Draco, but there's only enough room in this world for one version of him." I told her.
By this time, people were coming down for their last dinner before going home. We all walked out of the common room with everyone else, but Vexx and I walked far behind the group.
"I never expected her to really care about the person who has been threatening to beat her again." I told Vexx.
"I never expected you to attempt at apologizing to her." He said back.
"Oh that? That was not an apology. That was fake. I know how to apologize to someone, but I have no intentions on apologizing to her." I scoffed.
We entered the Great Hall and sat at our usual table with the other guys. The head mistress gave a small, boring Christmas speech that I wish I hadn't spent energy listening to. After dinner finished around nine o'clock, it took another hour for the creatures that took care of the school to get all of the proper bags to the proper buses and everyone to get on their proper bus. By this time it was around ten o'clock and I had an eight hour bus ride ahead of me that I knew I was going to sleep through most of, as it would be near five o'clock in the morning when I got to Ohio. It was the others' plan too, to sleep for most of the ride because they all slumped into their seats like I did and lean back, closing their eyes. We didn't even talk. We all just slept.
"Tomorrow will be the day you come home. You have done your research. Now let us put all that reading into action. I know you will not disappoint me, Raven Snape."
My eyes shot open. I saw the others were wide awake, talking to each other at a whisper. I looked out the window of the booth and saw the sun begin to rise.
"What time is it?" I asked them.
"Quarter after four." Heath told me.
I had to tell them. I needed to tell them that this was going to be the last time I was going to see them.
"Guys, I need to tell you something." I said.
All of their attention turned to me. They didn't say anything, they just stared at me, waiting.
"I was given an assignment. Which is why I had all of those apparation books." I told them.
"In charms, right? You've been going crazy in that unit. I've never seen you without one of those books." Cullen said.
"No, it isn't for a class," I told him, "I'm going back to Europe. I'm going back to my real home." I told them.
"When will you be back? Before second term starts, I hope. We need to get straight back into quidditch practices after the break." Cullen asked.
I took a breath and looked at all of the guys very seriously.
"I was just a boring book in all of your lives. I'm never coming back. I need you to take that book that I was in and throw it away. Forget about it. Forget about me. You're never going to see me again. They only way I will even consider coming back to America is if my master tells me I have to. But even then, you will not see me. I really thank you all for being so kind and letting me stay in your home for a couple months, but it will never be my home or my school. This world doesn't belong to me. My world is across the ocean. That one is real to me. This world may be real to you, but it isn't my world. I was raised in a much more strict, dark world. This one isn't mine to be a part of." I explained to them.
"You're leaving and you expect us to just forget about you?" Kaspar asked me with disbelief.
"I don't expect it, but I recommend it because I don't want my ghost to haunt you. I don't want you to torture yourselves with such an unpleasant memory." I told him.
"We need to step outside and talk." Vexx told me.
I nodded and we walked out of the compartment. Vexx closed the door behind him and walked over to the wall and leaning on it.
"What do you want to talk about?" I asked him, crossing my arms.
"Why-why-why didn't you tell me?" He stuttered, "I mean, did I not deserve to know? You could have told me and given me some time to find a way to change your mind. Don't you think you owed me that?"
"I couldn't." Was all I was capable of saying.
"You couldn't? You really thought so little of me that you couldn't have just talked to me? Why?" He asked.
"Because I couldn't." I said again.
"Raven, give me an answer! Why? Why not?" He snapped.
"Because I couldn't!" I exclaimed, but he kept demanding for an answer
"Why, Raven? I want an answer!" he demanded.
"Because you never let me talk! And even if you did let me talk you would have found a way to stop me from leaving, no matter how home sick I am and how much I want to go home!" I told him, "Is that what you wanted to hear? You wanted to hear me admit that you have that much power over my decisions through all of my stubbornness?"
He stared down at me like he was looking at ancient runes for the first time and he was told to decode the secret message they held without any help at all.
"Do you think I didn't want to tell you? Did you think it was easy to keep this from you?" I asked him, "you didn't think that everyday wasn't excruciating agony for me with you not knowing? I was alone and I had no clue how or when to tell you without you interrupting me, thinking that it was a stupid assignment for school! I didn't plan for any of this. For me to come to America, for me to have any chance at going home, for me to keep this from you for months! I didn't know that I was going to be given a miracle of going home, but it happened. What, you don't think I've tried to tell you a thousand times? You really think I want to be standing here in front of you, getting worked up because I've tried to tell you something but you were too closed-minded to listen? This isn't my fault." I explained to him.
He didn't know the agony that had just stopped stabbing me in the chest. It was like the reverse of being stabbed. The knife was being pulled out of my chest and I was healed. We walked back into the compartment and sat down.
"Snape, what are we going to do for quidditch without your coaching?" Cullen asked.
"You guys will do alright without me. Just remember all of my teachings and you'll do alright." I told him.
"Who's going to burn these two when you're gone?" Kaspar asked me.
"I don't see why Vexx can't." I told him.
"Who's face is good enough to distract me in history class?" Heath asked me.
"How about Cecelia Belle? She's just another pretty face. Pretty enough to distract you, don't you think?" I asked back.
"But she could never be as pretty as you." Heath pouted.
"I think you'll survive paying attention in class." I told him.
I looked at a clock in our booth and it read 'quarter to five'. I would reach my mother's house any minute.
"I have to go." I told them.
"Do I get my hug?" Cullen asked.
"No hugs, Gnash." I told him.
I stood up and walked over to the door, opening it and walking out.
"I wish all of you well." I told them.
I closed the door and walked down the corridor to the stairs. I walked down to the first floor and stood by the door. The man from my first time on the bus stood with my trunk and Nusaeross at his side.
"Ready to go home?" The man at the door asked me.
"You have no idea." I told him.
Only a few moments after he asked me this, the bus came to a stop and there was the house. The bus door opened and I stepped forward. The man passed me my trunk and raven. I took them and walked down the steps. I saw the house doors open and my mother walked out of the house. I looked back at the man.
"Goodbye." He said to me.
I nodded at him and looked back at the house. I grabbed my wand. I looked down at the trunk.
"Wingardium Leviosa." I said, flicking my wand at the trunk.
The trunk floated weightlessly up off of the ground. I guided the trunk toward the house as I walked to my mother with my bird cage in my other hand.
"Welcome home, dear." My mother smiled.
I looked up at her, not smiling back.
"I need to go to the ministry. Today." I told her.
"You just got home. Wouldn't you like to settle in first before going out again?" Mother asked.
"As soon as possible would be ideal." I told her.
She sighed and nodded.
"Well, alright. Let's just set your trunk and bird inside, then we can go." She said.
I quickly brought my things into the house and dropped them. I looked at my mother and signalled her to start making her way to the car. She caught the signal and shook her head.
"The Magical Congress of the United States of America is in Washington. We should go by Floo." She told me.
"Or just apparate?" I suggested.
My mother took a breath.
"Alright." She sighed.
She held out her hand to me. I took it, unwillingly of course. In only a few moments we were in an incredibly large room, filled with people, Floo networks, many doors and lifts. Mother walked me up to a desk with a man doing paperwork.
"Can I help you?" He asked my mother.
"I need an appointment with the president of MACUSA." I told him.
"For what purpose?" He asked me.
"Confidential." I told him.
"Name?" He asked me.
"Raven Snape."
"Reason: Confidential." He said to himself, "School information?"
"Complicated." I said, rolling my eyes.
"More specifically?"
"Age; fourteen, school; Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizard, year five." I explained to him.
He wrote down some things and folded it into a paper plane, he placed a spell on the paper and it flew away.
"Please sit. We'll get a letter back soon." The man said.
My mother and I obliged and sat in some chairs only a few meters away.
"What is this 'confidential stuff'?" My mother asked me.
"You'll find out." I told her.
We sat in silence until I saw a paper plane come back to the man at the desk. He looked at me and nodded. I stood up and walked over to him, my mother close behind.
"Not you." The man told my mother, and shooed her to go back to the chairs.
The man pushed the paper toward me.
Dear Miss Snape,
We have been waiting for your name to be brought up again at the MACUSA. We are aware of your schooling situation and your unhappiness with this situation. We must have your mother not be with you whilst you write the true reason for your visit on the line below this message. We will, then, send you to the proper head of the issue and we will help you with your problem as much as we are able to.
Sincerely, Innazora Axaryl
There was a line under the message for me to place the real reason for my visit, as the note said there would be. I wrote 'home placement/foster care request'. I flipped the paper over and slid it back to the man in front of me. The man took and took a quick look before folding the paper back up and sending it back to the President. I walked back over to my mother and sat down. We waited another ten minutes before a paper plane landed on the desk. The man opened it and signalled me over, this time allowing my mother to come with me.
"I will escort you to the head. Your meeting will take place as soon as we arrive." The man said, walking us through a crowd of busy people, "There, you will go inside. Your mother will have to wait until she is allowed in."
We walked to a lift and the man pressed a button. We began to drop to lower floors until we reached twelve floors below the main floor. The man lead us down a couple corridors until we reached a door. The man knocked and the door swung open. A woman stood there, smiling.
"Hello, Raven. My name is Edinora Arodali. Please come in." The woman introduced.
She gave a nod to the man, who nodded back and walked towards the way we came. Edinora told my mother to sit just outside and wait. I walked into the room and Edinora closed the door behind us. I sat in a chair across from where she sat on the other side of the desk.
"Now, Raven. Please explain to me your worries." Edinora told me.
"Well," I started, "I need to either go home, or go into foster care." I said plainly.
"Why?" She asked.
"Because if you don't take me out of my current house placement, I will simply leave. I dont belong in America. I didn't have a choice to come here. I was forced to go live with a stranger." I explained.
"But this stranger you speak of is your mother and you're not in danger," She told me, "I think you just need to bond with her and get to know her and you will think differently."
"I spent my whole summer with her and she is still a stranger. As far as I am concerned, she is dead. That is what my father told me until I was either in my first or second year. I have gone the majority of my life thinking this and that is what I will continue to think. So should I really be living with a woman who is dead to me? Isn't that like fourteen year old living alone? Isn't that when you place a child in a new home anyway?" I asked her.
Edinora sighed and placed her elbows on her desk.
"Now listen. Yes, you are correct about a child without a parent being placed in a new home, but that is not the case you are in," She told me, "You live with a loving mother who wants to live in peace with you."
"Now you listen, Miss Arodali. I am not living with a loving mother. I am suffering with a torturous mother. I am in agony living with that over-inviting creature! She's so happy, friendly, welcoming, and everything more digusting than those three traits." I explained to her.
"Define disgusting." She told me.
"Every trait that a lovely being has! I was raised in a different environment! In this 'positive' environment, I am anything but thinking positive. I do everything to wish that I was anywhere but in that environment. I have become miserable. And in the end, if my mother agrees to transfer me back home or to a different family, aren't you obligated to do as she says?" I asked her.
"Raven, you're not in any trouble! Without your mother's agreement, I'm afraid we can't do anything for you." She told me.
"Then let us bring her in! I'm sure she'll love to have input on this topic." I told her.
Edinora nodded and stood up. She walked over to the door and opened it, welcoming my mother inside. My mother walked in and sat next to me while Edinora sat back in her seat.
"Raven, would you like to explain to your mother why we are here today?" Edinora asked me.
"Mother, you would do anything to make sure I am happy, correct?" I asked her.
"Correct?" My mother said, more as a question than a confirmation.
"And that is anything in the world that I could ever wish for?" I asked.
"Anything."
"No matter how mad it is or how much you may object, as long as it made me happy?"
"Well now that makes me worry."
"Raven stop playing mind games and get to the point." Edinora told me.
"I just want to make sure she has no way of getting out of saying yes." I told Edinora.
"What am I saying yes to?" Mother asked.
"Something that will make me happy." I told her.
Edinora sighed and placed her hands elbows on the table.
"I will say yes if it means we get to leave faster." My mother said.
I looked over at Edinora, who gave me an unimpressed look.
"You heard her, Miss Arodali. She says yes." I smiled.
"She doesn't even know what she is saying yes to, Raven." Edinora told me.
I turned to my mother and smiled at her.
"Thank you. I'll be very happy to go home. Father will be relieve to see me back in my room and being bored out of his mind with your daughter." I told her.
"Excuse me? I am not going to allow you to travel back to Britain! I just got you back!" Mother exclaimed.
"You said yes!" I yelled.
"That was before I knew what I was saying yes to!" She said.
"You said that I would get what I wanted if it made me happy! I am miserable here! Do you want me to live my life here feeling miserable? Is that really what you want for me? You want me to be miserable?" I asked.
It was my goal to make her feel bad.
"Look, I know I'm not who you want me to be. I wasn't like you and your father. I was a Ravenclaw who studied with your father, but I will do anything to convince you to stop wanting to leave. Raven, I just got you back. If you leave, I'm going to be alone. If there is one thing about the two of us that is alike, it's our fear of abandonment." Mother explained to me.
"I abandoned you from my wanting to commit the minute you left my father and me and made me think you were dead. I can commit to my father again when I go home because he raised me. But you abandoned us! I'm just returning the favor. I don't feel safe around you like I did father because you've never proven me safety. You've only proven me shelter, nourishment and umbrage." I told her.
"Define umbrage, Raven." Edinora told me.
"Umbrage is defined as a sense of personal displeasure. Synonyms include offense, resentment, anger, irritation, vexation, et cetera." I told Edinora, "Thus more evidence as to why I need to leave. I should not feel this way in what people call a good home. A good home includes happiness in its definition, no matter whom you ask. I do not receive said happiness."
I looked over to my mother who looked like she just watched her beloved pet die in front of her. Her heart was crushed. I took my wand form my pocket and flicked it.
How could I let her live with me and allow her to feel this pain? I'm a terrible mother. I can't lose her, but she's desperate for happiness that I am incredibly unable to provide. My mother thought to herself.
"Just give us the papers and we'll take them home to think about it. If my mother signs them, we will send them back." I told Edinora.
It took a minute for Edinora to agree, but to my surprise, she pulled open a drawer and pulled out a small booklet. She slid it across the table to us. I took the booklet and stood up.
"Brilliant! I'm glad we got to talk and it was great to meet you, Miss Arodali." I said, holding my hand out.
Edinora stood up and shook it.
"It was a pleasure meeting you both as well." Edinora said, shaking my mother's hand.
Mother and I walked out of the room. Mother held out her hand. I took it and we apparated out of the MACUSA back to the house. We showed up right outside. Mother took the papers and walked into the house. I took this time to see how much I learned from my reading. Holding my wand firmly in my hand, I thought about my room within this house and its differences from my original room at home. I was aware of the idea off splinching and of the fine I would get for needing the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad or just being underage and not having a licence. Thinking of all of this made me worry. How could I get away with this if the MACUSA was notified of my underage, without-licence apparation? I couldn't deny it because they have all the proof they need. Every underage witch or wizard is tracked. If we do anything illegal, the magical authorities would know about it and be on us like children with candy.
So I decided against practicing until the Dark Lord gave me a reason not to worry. I put my wand back in my pocket and walked inside to get an apple, and then take a nap. I walked into the kitchen. My mother sat at the table, reading the paperwork. I got my apple and walked to the front door to get my bird and trunk. I got them to levitate next to me all the way to my room. I entered the bright room and placed the things at the end of my bed, the bird cage on top of the trunk. I opened the cage for my bird to fly.
"We're back, Nusaeross, but we're not home. It's only a matter of time though. I shall hope that the Dark Lord speaks to me tonight and gives me another way to go home." I told my bird, which made his way to my bed to rest.
I placed my apple on my vanity. He looked at me as if I should know something.
"What is it bird? Do you know something I do not?" I asked him.
He looked from one side of the room to another. That was his way of saying no.
"Bloody bird, you should know how to talk. You're smart." I told him, moving his cage off of my trunk and opening the large box.
"Bloody bird." A deep voice said, almost like a squawk.
My eyes darted up to my bird.
"You talked?" I asked him.
"Bloody bird." He said again, only this time I saw him do it.
"Smart bird!" I exclaimed, "Bloody brilliant!"
I felt so relieved that the bird could actually talk and I didn't have to go off of yes and no answers. Suddenly, I came up with a brilliant (yet potentially mad) idea. I dug through my trunk to find my transfiguration book. I flipped through the pages rapidly to try to find what I was looking for. I looked at every spell name. I expected the spell to start with an 'A', because it had to do with an avian. It couldn't be that difficult to find because the spells are placed in alphabetical order. All I knew was that if the spell I was looking for was in this book, it would be somewhere at the back of the 'A' section.
"A-u, A-u-r, A-v, A-v-a, A-v-e, A-v-i," I said aloud as I went through the names, then I found it, "Avintehmancy!"
I read through the page on this spell. I read it aloud for Nusaeross to hear what I wanted to do.
"Avintehmancy (Incantation; Avintehman) is an extremely difficult transfiguration, as it transfigures a bird into a human. Trans-species transfiguration is one of the most difficult transfigurations to perform, only being taught to level six or N.E.W.T level students. It has been stated many time that trans-species transfiguration can go terribly wrong if performed poorly and should not be attempted on people until you have passed your N.E.W.T test. If changing a bird to a human, it is suggested that the bird is able to talk, or the human they become with most likely turn out mute. This spell may also give the bird/human to have animagus capabilities, giving them the ability to transfigure themselves as they please after that first spell. This spell is much more difficult to preform perfectly than it appears." I read out to Nusaeross.
As soon as I finished reading the description, Nusaeross beat his wings continuously and squawked 'no' many times.
"Directions!" I exclaimed over my bird's noise, "Firmly hold your wand toward your bird. Make sure your bird is calm or it may cause the bird harm. Flick your wand upward, and then back to neutral position whilst clearly announcing the incantation."
I closed the book and looked at my raven.
"No, no, no." Nusaeross said, beating his wings more furiously.
"Come on! It will be fun!" I exclaimed.
Nusaeross stopped beating his wings for a moment. He didn't look at me.
"Please think about it my bird. It would be great for you to walk or fly by my side as you please. And if you don't want to be human, you can stay as a bird if you prefer." I told him.
He looked back at me.
"Alright." He said.
I jumped for joy then quickly composed myself. I had to do this properly or I might hurt him. That was the last thing I would want to do. I took my Hogwarts wand from my pocket and firmly pointed it to Nusaeross. I envisioned him turning into a human. I quickly flicked my wand up then back at Nusaeross.
"Avintehman!" I yelled.
A tangled, crimson wave of tiny particles shot out of my wand and darted over to my bird that began to twist into a whirlwind of black before it began to lighten and grow into a large figure. The whirlwind moved off my bed, only to slow down and begin to reveal a human figure. The whirlwind around him stopped and there stood a boy, his height a bit taller than my own. He was in black jeans and a black leather jacket standing with his back towards me. I stared at him, excitement taking over my mind.
"It worked!" I exclaimed.
My former raven turned to look at me. My excitement disappeared the second my eyes landed on the boy's face. He looked my age. He looked around fourteen.
"Hello, Raven." He said, a piece of jet black hair falling in front his face.
I stared in awe. He was incredibly attractive for a raven. It made me sad that someone like him has been stuck as a bird his whole life.
"Is there something wrong with me?" He asked, looking down at what he was wearing.
He looked at his hands, flipping his palms up and down, studying every detail of his own hands.
"My wings are gone and now I have these. What am I supposed to do with these?" He asked, handing his hands out to me.
I walked over to him and held his hands in my own.
"You hand hold things. You can write. You can do whatever you want." I told him.
"But I can't fly. Is that what you call 'whatever I want'? All I want is to fly." He told me.
I sighed and looked at his hands. I noticed that they were abnormally soft.
"You don't realize the greatness of these gifts until you can use them." I told him.
I let go of his hands and walked over to my vanity. I took the apple and brought it over to Nusaeross. I took one of his hands and placed the apple in it, then guided his fingers to close around it. I let go again. I watched as he stared at the apple.
"Have things always been this small?" He asked me.
I laughed, "Yes, things are much smaller in this point of view. Take a bite." I nodded at the apple.
I could see him run his tongue over his teeth. He brought the apple to his mouth and took a bite of it. I smiled and walked over to my vanity and stared into the mirror.
"I guess I have to thank you now." Nusaeross said to me.
"It isn't my worst idea in the world." I shrugged turning to face him.
"You never get any bad ideas. They're all brilliant." He said.
"I think you're just saying that because you're my bird." I scoffed.
He approached me at the vanity and set the apple down. He smiled down at me.
"I'm not a just your bird anymore." He told me.
I smiled and nodded. He looked up and at the mirror.
"Who's that?" He asked me, "I can see the back of Auzilen's head, but who's that guy? And why is he mimicking me?"
I turned around and saw what he was looking at. I laughed.
"That's you, Nusaeross. You're looking at the refection of us." I told him.
"I guess I have a lot to learn as a human." He told me.
I agreed with him and walked over to my bed. I sat on the side and swung my legs over to lie back on my pillows. I looked over at Nusaeross who looked back at me. I held my arm out to him, as habit of calling over my bird, but I quickly caught myself and dropped it. Instead, I pat the place next to me. He smiled and walked around to the other side of my bed and relaxed next to me. The silence gave me time to think about things other than Nusaeross. My mind was bombarded with thoughts of my Auntie Trix, Dolohov and Rookwood, the Malfoys and most importantly, the dark lord. I missed all of them dearly. I closed my eyes and saw the face of my aunt.
"What are you thinking about?" Nusaeross asked me.
"Nothing, Nusaeross. I'm fine." I told him.
"I've spent five years watching you think. I know what it looks like." He told me.
"My aunt." I told him, opening my eyes.
"She will be freed. I have a strong feeling that she will. Freed along with Dolohov and Rookwood. The dark lord needs her if he plans on coming back." He said.
I sighed and nodded. I moved closer to him and placed my head on his shoulder.
"Hey, Rave?" He whispered.
I looked up at his midnight black eyes.
"Call me Ross." He said.
I nodded and placed my head back on his shoulder. I looked over at the apple on my vanity. I pulled out my wand from my pocket and pointed it at the apple.
"Accio apple." I said and the apple flew over to my hand.
I caught it and took a bite from it, not caring that Nusaeross already took a bite.
"Raven! Would you like any lunch?" My mother called from downstairs.
"It's noon already? How long have we been in here?" I asked the boy next to me.
"The real question is 'how long have you been at the MACUSA?'" Nusaeross corrected me.
"How long was I at the MACUSA?" I asked him.
"A while." He told me simply.
"I was there to tell them that I needed be moved back to my father's or placed with a foster family. We ended up getting some paper work to bring home so my mother could think about it." I explained to him.
"Why go through the process?" He asked me.
I looked up at him, confused.
"What do you mean?" I asked him.
"Why not just leave? You don't need her permission. If she really wanted you to be happy, she would let you go. And if she really trusted you to have her smarts and you father's ruthlessness and ability to perfect any spell given to him, she would trust that you can take care of yourself. So just leave." He told me.
"I can't apparate," I said, "I'll be traced and fined a large fine my father and I can't afford."
"Then I will get someone who you can side-along apparate with." He said.
He stood up and walked to my vanity. He opened a drawer and pulled out a piece of parchment, a quill and ink. I got up and walked over to him. I watched as he messily wrote a message.
Mr Malfoy,
My name is Ross, or Nusaeross as others know me. I am Raven's messenger. She is an incredible witch who turned me, her raven, into a human with the trans-species transfiguration. She did this without any lessons, without any practice, on her first try. I believe that this should be enough reason to come to Ohio and save the girl who is like your daughter and is your son's best friend. Come to 6284690 Deercrest Drive, Salem Township, Ohio. We await your reply.
Wishing all the best,
Nusaeross
The boy rolled up the paper and left it on the vanity
"I'll take this to the Wizarding Post and be back." He said.
Without warning, his nose and mouth turned into a long black beak. Black feathers smoothly grew from every piece of skin and clothing. His hair, too, turned into a bunch of feathers. His arms moved to his back and turned into wings. Only after these few seconds, he became the small raven I knew before. He hopped over to the rolled up letter, took it in one of his feet and flew over to the window. I opened it and I watched as my raven flew from my sight. I took this time without him to go downstairs and go see what my mother was going to do with the papers. I walked out of my window-lit room and walked down to the kitchen.
"Have you come for lunch?" She asked me.
"No, I'm coming to see what you're going to do with the paperwork." I told her.
"You're not going to leave me, Raven. This isn't up for discussion." She said.
"It's either you let me leave, or I'm going to leave without your knowing. Either way, I'm going back to Britain." I told her.
"I told you this isn't up for discussion!" She said, raising her voice.
"I wasn't going to discuss this with you! I'm just telling you that that is how it is going to be, whether you want it to happen or not!" I said, swatting a vase off of an accent table next to me.
The vase fell to the floor and shattered into a thousand pieces. My mother watched as the pieces of the vase flew in every direction and there were no large pieces to recognise.
"Oops?" I smirked.
"You clean that up right now!" My mother barked at me.
"Umm," I hummed acting like I was thinking, "actually I wont. And if you don't want more things broken in this house, I suggest you rethink your answer."
I turned and began to walk out of the room, but something made me stop. Curiosity? Nostalgia of being motherless? I turned and looked at her. I walked over to the table and sat in my usual spot.
"You don't get to just take a pick at your litter, then disappear for thirteen years. Mothers don't do that." I told her quietly.
"Raven, don't do that. That's not fair. I've made mistakes but I'm here now. That's got to count for something."
"Shut it," I snapped, "This isn't about you! Actually, this is about you. This is about what you didn't do and what I did. And you know what? I did a bloody brilliant job without you. I thought I wanted a mother who cared about me and didn't leave my father and I. But what I learned without you is a lot more than what I would have with you. When I was one and half, you told me that you were going for a walk and you would be back in an hour. You're twelve and half years late."
"How do you remember that?"
"Since I met you, many memories that I have forgotten have been coming back to me." I told her, "But still, you left. Why were father and I not good enough?"
"You were-"
"Then where were you?"
"I wasn't home, but that was only because-"
"How could you not be home? Mothers shouldn't be the ones to leave. Especially not when her daughter is one year old and especially not when she plans on separating her twin daughters, " I scoffed at the thought of her doing it, then I remembered that she did do that, "I had no one at home. My father was at work everyday. I had live at the Malfoys. It was like living in a second home with a second family, but there was no one home. The small house on Spinners End? Did you forget about how lonely that place can be? Do you know how much worse that loneliness gets without your whole family there? Well at that time, my mother was dead, I was an only child and my father was nearly never home. Spinners End was my residence, but I lived at the Malfoys."
"I give them my sincerest apologies for them having responsibility for someone else's child for so long, but it isn't-"
"Your fault?" I finished for her, "It isn't your fault? You left us! Another family took care of me. They did it all, no thanks to you because you weren't there! And I think I thank Merlin you weren't because I've had a bloody amazing life before you turned up! You dont even know who I am!"
"You are my daughter!" The woman yelled slamming her hands on the table.
"Yes! I am your daughter, but you were my mother!" I yelled back, my voice booming over her soft voice, "While you had a perfect family with your perfect daughter eating across the table from you at every meal and eating sweets and desserts, I was living with a father who taught me tough love. He left all the work of caring for a daughter to the house elves over the summer. One would be like my maid, doing my hair, cleaning my clothes, taking care of keeping my room clean, the other elf would make us food. But no matter how great it was to have house elves to take care of the house and me, I wanted what you had here. I wanted to be asked how my day was. I wanted someone to be interested in what book I was reading. I wanted someone to be there at my home to keep me company whilst the house elves were doing their jobs. 'How was your day, Raven?' 'It was great mother!' That was what I wanted! You had that! You had a smile on your face, going to bed every night knowing you had the perfect daughter in the room next to you. All I got was the worry of not being good enough to go to sleep that night. I always felt stupid going to bed each night. I needed someone there to tell me that I was doing alright and that I wasn't stupid. I didn't want to go to sleep and remember that my mother was dead and she wasn't going to be the person to tell me that I wasn't stupid when I came to her in tears. I wanted a mother! Instead, I got a cold-hearted father who turned me into a strong, cold-hearted, person." I explained to her, trying to stay as clam as possible.
"I know I've let you down and lost your trust, but I have a reason for all of it." She told me.
"Save it for the letter to me making sure I got back home safely." I told her.
"Raven I know I've made a huge mess, but this is how I'm trying to make up for it. You can't leave. I can't change who your father sculpted you to be, but I need you to forgive-"
There was a sudden knock at the front door. I shot up out of my seat and walked to the door. I opened it to see Nusaeross in his human self.
"Ross, you're back! Why at our door?" I asked him.
"Well I was at your window, but I saw that you weren't in your room so I came down here." He said.
I opened the door more and stepped aside for him to come in. He walked in and I closed the door.
"My mother and I are done our conversation. Let's go to my room." I told him.
As we began to climb the stairs, my mother cleared her throat behind us, making us turn to look at her.
"Yes?" I asked her.
"Who is this?" She asked me.
I looked up at Ross, who quickly smiled and walked past me and back to the bottom of the stairs.
"I'm Ross. Raven and I met at school and became quite close. She told me that she wasn't coming back to Ilvermorny after the Christmas break so I wanted to stop by and spend a while with her to say goodbye." He explained to my mother, shaking her hand.
"Well, she's wrong there. She will be going back to school after Christmas." My mother told him, giving me an unapproving look.
"Well I highly doubt that," Ross told her, "If I've learned anything about Raven from the past two and a half months, it's that if Raven plans on doing something, it always end up happening in one way or another. She told me that on the bus ride to school on our first day. She's been proving it ever since. I'm just glad she hasn't left yet."
He looked up at me and gave me a smile.
"Well, I thought I would give myself some time before traveling again. After that bus ride, I could wait a few days." I told him.
"Well we'll see about that. You two go ahead. It was nice meeting you, Ross." My mother smiled at my friend.
"You as well." Ross nodded.
We quickly made our way up to my room and locked ourselves in.
"You get the letter to the Malfoys?" I asked him, walking over to my bed and sitting on it.
He didn't say anything. All he did was pull something from his back pocket. It was a folded piece of parchment.
"A reply already?" I asked him.
"Wizarding post tends to be remarkably fast." He told me.
He handed me the parchment. I took it and opened it.
Dearest RL and Nusaeross,
This is Narcissa. RL, you must tell us everything about your new discoveries of trans-species transfiguration when you get home. Unfortunately, Lucius is currently busy and will be for a while, but I would love to make the journey to America and bring you home. All I need is a picture of the destination of where I will be arriving. As soon as I receive that, I will have what I need to bring you home. Have your things packed. Soon after that picture is sent, I will be there to pick you up. Be conspicuous. Don't have your mother catch you getting your things out of the house. I suggest using your window and the levitation charm to get it out. I await the information I need. Be quick.
Much love,
Narcissa Malfoy
I folded the paper back up and placed it on my side table.
"We need a picture." I told Ross.
"I shall ask your mother if we have a camera in the house." He offered, jumping up and running out of the room.
I was surprised how fast he came back with a device in his hands. He held it out to me and I took it. I had never used a camera before but I knew how to figure things out quickly. I walked over to my vanity and did a test run, taking a picture of myself in the mirror. After pressing the button, a flash came from the camera and a small picture began to come out of the bottom. I turned to the boy and held it to him.
"All you have to do is point the camera lens at the thing you want to take a picture of, and then press this button." I explained, showing him the button.
He took the camera and pointed the lens at me, then quickly pressed the button.
"Ross! Not of me! The house!" I laughed.
"I couldn't resist." He smiled, taking the picture from the bottom of the camera.
He placed the picture on my side table and transfigured himself into a bird again, then flew out my window. I saw him turn back into a boy and take a picture of the house. He turned into a bird again and flew up to my room with the picture. He turned back into a boy and stood in front of me. I quickly wrote a note back to Narcissa. I taped the picture to the page and held it out to Nusaeross. He took it and became a bird yet again before flying out the window with the letter and picture.
"I'll be home soon."
A/n
word count: 9085
I knowwww its a long chapterrrr!!! But I just couldn't stop writing! This all leads up to the best parts and I just couldn't stop! How are your feelings for Nusaeross as a human. Or should I call him Ross?
Question, what are your future predictions for Ross as a human character?
Also, so you enjoy long chapters? Or would you rather me make them shorter?
Luvz, Spade