Hari woke up screaming, well not screaming really, more like frantic hissing as she dug her nails into her arms.
It was a nightmare, she told herself, just a dream! Yet it was always just a nightmare, and they never went away. She grabbed the glass of water beside her bed, drinking it as she tried to calm down.
She finally managed to fall asleep again. Curling up into a ball, she pulled Nimhe closer to her, the snake giving her a feeling of comfort.
• • •
It was dark, Hari was in a large old kitchen. She smelled the rot and decay around her. Walking towards the only door, she came out into the hall. She saw a staircase and started up it. The stairs were thick with dust, which tickled Hari's nose as it rose into the air.
At the top of the stairs, at the very end of the hallway, a door stood ajar, light flickering through the gap. Suddenly slithering along the floor came a gigantic snake. It looked at her, tilting its head, as though beckoning her.
She, sadly, followed the snake. As she entered the room, all she she saw was a flash of snakelike red eyes before her body erupted in pain.
She awoke again, sweating, tangled up in her blankets. Her arms were bleeding from her ever digging nails, gagged from all the times she bit them.
Giving up on sleep, she made her way out of bed. Putting on one of her giant sweaters over her pj's, she made her way down to the kitchen. She rubbed her eyes as she entered the kitchen. She stopped at the sight of more people than just Sirius. Lupin was standing next to the fireplace.
Hello Professor Lupin! She cast with her left hand, pulling her her sweater down further.
"You don't need to call me professor, Hari, just Remus."
Hari nodded.
"Remus is going to be staying here with us."
Oh! Cool! She wouldn't be all alone when Sirius left almost everyday for work, that would be nice.
She yawned, making her way over to the cupboard for cereal. Pouring it into a bowl, she looked up at the list of things they had to do in order to make the house more livable. It was nailed up over the counter. The next thing on the list was doxies.
• • •
After breakfast, she got properly dressed, pulling her hair into a ponytail. It was Sirius's day off from work at the Ministry, so the two of them made their way to the drawing room, a long, high-ceilinged room on the first floor with olive green walls. The carpet exhaled little clouds of dust every time someone put their foot on it and the long, moss green velvet curtains wiggling avery time a doxie moved.
"Alright," said Sirius, "I have some Doxycide, were going to need to-"
We could just freeze the curtains.
"What?"
Like just a quick freezing charm, then stun them individually? And package them? Isn't the venom useful?
"Oh, yeah..."
#Do not move.# Hari hissed, and the wiggling stopped. Sirius conjured a box, and Hari stuffed the curtains in. She vanished the curtain leaving only the doxies in the box and looked up to see Sirius staring at her again.
What?
"That's a sixth year spell!"
She smiled.
"Then again, you did become an animagus in your third year, we only managed in our fifth."
She sealed the box, labeled it, hissed #Stay the same as you are.# and when asked, Sirius banished it to one of the many storage rooms.
• • •
Lupin joined them as they moved on to cleaning junk out of an old cupboard. Many of the objects in there seemed very reluctant to leave their dusty shelves. Sirius sustained a bad bite from a silver snuffbox; within seconds his bitten hand had developed an unpleasant crusty covering like a tough brown glove.
"Its OK," he said, examining the hand with interest before tapping it lightly with his wand and restoring its skin to normal, "must be Wartcap powder in there."
That's useful as well right?
So Sirius, sighing, banished it to where the Doxies were.
Hari picked up a small silver instrument that looked like it was a many-legged pair of tweezers. The second she touched it, it scuttled up her arm and tried you dig its way into her skin. Sirius grabbed and smashed it.
There was a music box, that when opened almost made Sirius and Lupin pass out, until Hari shut it, sealing it with a charm, and stuffing it into her pocket when no one was looking.
The next thing was a silver and emerald locket with a snakelike S on it. Hari picked it up, immediately crumpling as pain seared in her scar.
I'm alright, Hari got back up to her feet, pocketing the locket as well.
• • •
Late that evening, Hari found time to go ask Severus about the locket. She got changed into more formal clothing, incase anyone was visiting him.
She made her way straight to the the fireplace connecting to Severus's house, changed herself into Cassandra, sprinkled floo powder on the flames, and jumped in.
She came out into the closet beside her room. She made her way down the hallways and knocked on Severus's study door before opening it and walking in on Severus talking with someone who could only be Draco's mother. The woman wore a beautiful black and green medieval style gown. Her black and platinum hair pulled back.
"Bonjour, vous seriez Cassandra?" The woman said. *Hello, must be Cassandra?*
#) Oui c'est moi, et vous étes? (# Hari replied. *Yes, that's me, and you are?*
"Narcissa Malfoy, la mère de Draco." Narcissa answered. *Narcissa Malfoy, Draco's mother.*
#) It's wonderful to finally meet you. (# Hari said, she didn't pretend to stumble over her english anymore, she figured it had been long enough.
"We were wondering." Narcissa said, "If you wanted to come stay with us for the rest of the summer, including going to the Quidditch World Cup Final."
There were only three weeks left of the summer, she had spent the rest of it with Sirius. Sirius, who had gotten a job at the Ministry Of Magic, was busy on the day of the cup. She looked at Severus, who nodded.
#) I would love too, thank you. (#
"I can send her over tomorrow morning."
"Wonderful, I look forwards to having you Cassandra."
"It's getting late Cassandra," Snape said, "You should go pack."
Hari nodded, making her way to the fireplace, and then her room at Grimauld place. She packed all her nice clothing, which wasn't a lot. Her closets were linked between Sirius's and Severus's, a charm she'd done herself earlier in the summer.
She made her way down to the kitchen, walking in as Sirius and Remus were eating dinner, Sirius glanced up and went back to eating. Remus however, got to his feet and walked over.
"Hello Cassandra. How did you get here, are you a friend of Hari's?"
Shoot she'd forgotten to change back, #) I- Professor Lupin... I - I'm sorry, I came out through the wrong grate. Do you have any floo powder? (#
"I believe so, um, Sirius?"
"Yeah, I'll show her. Come with me Cassandra."
She followed him out into the hall, changing back into Hari
#) I'm sorry, It was an accident. When you get back, can you please tell Lupin Cassandra left? (#
Sirius nodded.
#) Ummm, please don't get mad - (#
"Why would i get mad?"
#) I'm am, as Cassandra, staying with the Malfoy....... until term starts. (#
"What?"
#) They're taking me to the Quidditch World Cup? (#
"I don't trust them. Stay away from Lucius."
#) So you're letting me go? (#
"Yeah." He took something out of his pocket, handing her a small mirror. "I was going to give this to you for Christmas, but take it now."
She turned the mirror over in her hand. Suddenly Sirius's face appeared in it, she looked up at him to see him holding an identical mirror.
"It's a two way mirror, that one used to be your father's."
"Thank you!"