NOTE: I do not own any of the ideas or characters expressed in this story (except Cassie Jackson). All of these belong to J.K. Rowling.
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Cassie P.O.V.
I tug my trunk in close to me to avoid hitting a third year over the head, trying hard not to yell at him for not paying attention as he scurries quickly away. More students jostle past me in their attempt to board the train as quickly as possible, all of us heading home for Christmas break. I lug my trunk more carefully past a group of fifth years saying goodbye and finally reach the stairs leading onto the Hogwarts Express.
“Need a hand?”
I look up through the few strands of hair that have fallen out of my bun to see Katherine hurrying down the steps to help. Together, we drag my heavy trunk onto the train and start pulling it down the cramped hallways.
“Thanks,” I huff, dodging quickly out of a first year’s path to avoid being run over.
Katherine stops in front of a compartment door and smiles at me, saying over her shoulder, “Sure. I think Cho’s in this one.”
I follow her inside and slide the compartment door shut behind me, then look up to see Neville, Luna, and Cho sitting down on the train seats. And as Katherine starts pulling my trunk over to the ceiling rack, I peek around her and see Danny sitting next to Cho.
My stomach dips, and I worry that he’ll get up and leave the compartment as soon as he realizes I’m here. But Danny glances over at me, gives a tiny smile, and surprisingly says, “Hey there, Cassidora.”
What the hell is going on? Ever since Matt died last year, Danny has done nothing but avoid me at all costs—not that I haven’t been doing to same. Now he’s actually talking to me?
I roll my eyes with a slight smile, trying desperately to think of what to say to that. I’m saved from having to come up with a quick reply, however, as Cho reaches over to mess up Danny’s hair, saying playfully, “Danny, you’re so immature.”
He grumbles and bats her hand away, so I take the opportunity to slip past Katherine and take a seat beside Neville. Neville grins at me happily, and I quickly discover the reason for his cheerfulness; Luna’s sitting on his other side with a wistful smile on her pale face. Trying hard to suppress a laugh at the two of them, I pat Neville’s shoulder fondly as Katherine sits down opposite me next to Cho.
The train lurches into motion after a moment, the whistle blaring to signal its departure. It’s not long before all of is except for Luna, who sits and reads the Quibbler, become immersed in a game of Exploding Snaps. I try to avoid direct eye contact with Danny, and neither of us says much else to the other.
We’ve only been on the train for about an hour when everything starts to go horribly, horribly wrong. The game of Snaps has been over for a while now, and the six of us have resigned to just talking—even Luna’s put aside her magazine. But Katherine’s only halfway through a rant about the decreasing quality of food at Hogwarts when the train suddenly rocks so violently that Neville almost pitches to the floor. He catches himself just in time as the loud screech of the train brakes cuts through the air, and the train starts to slow down.
“What the bloody hell is going on?” Katherine snaps, starting to stand. I’m opening my mouth to reply when something black flashes past our window, downing the compartment in darkness for a moment.
The six of us automatically lean close and look out the window, holding onto each other as terrified yells rise up around the train. I bring my face up close to the glass, trying to spot whatever had flown by our window, but the cloudy day is making it too difficult to see much at all.
The train jolts again, throwing us all to the side as the sound of shattering glass erupts from somewhere down the hall. As we carefully get to our feet, Katherine practically runs over to the compartment door and peers outside.
“Is it Dementors again?” Cho asks in a shaky voice, reminding us all of third year. Four years ago, they’d come on board in search of Sirius Black; who could they possibly be looking for this time?
Katherine doesn’t respond for half a second, setting my nerves on end. But she suddenly whips her head back inside and slams the door shut, saying quietly, “Worse.”
Even I pick up on the terror in her voice. She’s pulling down the shade over the door window as Danny asks from the back of our compartment, “What could possibly be worse than that?”
Katherine’s fingers find the lock and turn it, then she glances at me and whispers, “Death Eaters.”
I take a startled step back at her words, and say somewhat sarcastically, “Do you really think a locked door will stop them?”
“Well, get out your wand!” Katherine bites back, digging in her pocket for her own. I automatically reach for mine as another blast rocks the train, louder and closer than before.
“Wait,” Neville asks nervously, looking around to see everyone pulling out their wands without second thoughts. “Won’t we get in trouble for attacking them?”
“Neville, who cares—“
Katherine’s snappy reply is cut short by a sharp knock at the door, so powerful that the windowpane shakes. Even through the thick wood and screams, we all hear a high pitched, crazed cackle.
“Who is it?” Luna giggles softly at her own joke, though I see that her knuckles have gone white from gripping her wand so tightly as she laughs. None of us join in.
There’s a moment of dead silence that sets my teeth on edge with anticipation, feeling closed in with the six us pressed together near the window—and I’m not even at the very back. The screams around us are getting louder, and the fear is just starting to really make my stomach churn when the door suddenly blasts off its hinges, sending all six of us diving for the floor. Smoke fills the tiny compartment quickly, and I do my best to cover my head as bits of wood from the splintered door rain down upon us.
It’s impossible to see anything through the slowly thinning smoke, but there’s the unmistakable sound of footsteps over by the doorway, getting closer and closer. I know my wand has probably rolled off into the darkness somewhere, so I don’t even bother trying to feel for it. Blinking quickly to clear my blurred eyesight, I press my palms against the dust covered carpet and attempt to lift myself up off the ground.
I can hear someone violently coughing just a few feet away as I get my knees under me, and I’m just trying to figure out who it could be when a boot slams into my side. Letting out a strangled cry of pain, I fly to the left and hit something soft—the smoke has dissipated enough for me to see that it’s Cho. I roll off her with a hoarse cough, clutching at my bruised ribcage. The compartment seems to spin as I attempt to focus my vision on the tall figure sweeping past me, but all I can make out is a dark cloak and a mass of messy, brown curls.
Bellatrix.
By the time I realize who it is, it’s far too late. I’m still blinking furiously to see through the thinned smoke as the figure bends down and drags someone up off the floor, emitting a high-pitched laugh that makes my skin crawl. Bellatrix Lestrange hauls the person past everyone and out the door, and I’m just getting unsteadily to my feet when Neville brushes past me, running after her. I pull myself up to see Danny hefting a large portion of the door off of himself, and Cho helping Katherine to her feet; my blood turns cold as I realize who’s missing, who Bellatrix dragged out the door.
Neville’s screaming something, but the sound of it is interrupted at the sound of a loud crack outside the hallway. I stagger out the doorway to see Neville on his knees, yelling at nothing but an empty, glass-covered hallway. It’s clear that Bellatrix has Disapparated, vanishing to some unknown place.
And she’s taken Luna with her.
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Just so we're all the same page, Luna got taken from the train in the actual series too. So I'm not just making this part up lol. Anyway, tell me what ya think! Thank you so much for reading (;