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listen to: pray for me — the weeknd & kendrick lamar, while/before reading to set the mood

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01 | lumos

lumos

charm; lights the tip of the wand

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"GRINDELWALD'S GOT THE ELDER wand!" Arden leaned over her table and kept her voice hushed. "There's a rumor; have you heard?"

Evelina glanced out of the window and hid her surprise with a curt nod. "I know," Arden's face fell, and barely holding in an exasperated sigh, she continued. "But maybe you can tell me more when we arrive."

Her friend smiled slightly, satisfied, and Evelina resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

The train lurched as it traveled through tunnels and open air, the blur of green foliage and darkness mixing together quickly until it made her head hurt to try and differentiate.

She was sitting in the prefects' cabin on the Hufflepuff side, her best friend having snuck in. Slytherins were known for their mischief, after all. It was nothing new, and at this point, the teachers no longer cared. As Arden started to ramble again, Evelina looked for anything else to look at, something to distract her — until her eyes met icy blue ones.

Tom Riddle.

His stare was unyielding, fierce and forced her to look away before he did. There was something about it that scared her a little, something so intense and strange; and she couldn't tell what it was, swirling in the depths of his blue eyes that made her flinch. It was dark within the light, like...

She couldn't find the right words.

It was interesting, really, how somebody could put up such a facade, one that fooled even the greatest of the great, the masters. But Tom was himself a master, of the human mind. He could mold people like clay, until they became puppets on his strings — but perhaps she was the only one who knew that eventually those strings tangled around their necks into nooses.

She glanced at her fellow prefect, seated neatly beside her. Samuel Crevit was a fascinating boy; seemingly there was nothing more in life that he wanted except for the happiness and kindness of others, and good grades for himself — and perhaps the occasional Quidditch victory. She didn't believe it for a second. It was different for Evelina; there was only one thing she truly craved. There were times when she looked at herself in one of the distorting bathroom mirrors and saw her large emerald green eyes and silvery blonde hair as just another vessel for the darkness that flowed through many Slytherins.

Sometimes it felt like people could see through her, but they just didn't want to. When things got complicated, nobody stuck around... You'd be alone in a mess without any help. They were all the same. Sometimes there was nothing you could do —

A homely voice interrupted her thoughts. "Anything off the cart, dear?"

Almost snapping at the woman, Evelina composed herself with a demure smile. "Two pieces of Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, please."

"That'll be four sickles, please." Beaming in delight, she put them into a small paper bag as Evelina handed her four of the bright silver coins.

Slipping a piece of it into her mouth, she smiled as the fruity taste hit her tongue. It'd been so long since she'd simply indulged... It felt like every new day, every new task was a competition recently.

Sam nudged her out of her brief reverie, offering her an escape from the fog that had started to cloud her mind. Letting the corner of her lips twitch up in an almost invisible simper that looked genuine, she leaned back in her seat, cushioned with deep, cherry red leather. It was a long ride, but the scenery outside — a picturesque view of the Scottish countryside — was endlessly captivating. Dew sparkled on the tips of long grasses, glimmering in the fading, twilight beams. In the definition of perfect cosmic balance, the sun had almost set, as the moon rose slowly into the sky, full and cratered.

Evelina's abysmal green eyes shone with the light of a lamp flickering on in the car, reflecting the bulb like mirrors. These were the moments where she felt most at peace. Snuggling into the crook of Sam's neck, she placed her head gently on his shoulder as she glanced out of the window once more. Curling his fingers into hers, he grinned down at her, smoothing his chestnut hair down with his free hand in one nervous motion. Resisting the urge to scoff at his childish behavior, Evelina hid her face in his robe.

All prefects had changed into their regular uniform of work robes adorned with their house colors about three quarters way into the train ride. The mustard yellow looked strange against her skin tone, unusually warm against the cool. Dulling her complexion, she had never hated her standard Hufflepuff uniform so much until this very moment.

Whatever she felt, Sam didn't seem to notice. Focused on the sensation of their intertwined fingers, he almost seemed mesmerized by her, as if she had captured his eyes along with his heart. As the train slowed, so did time, and as he leaned into to kiss her, she turned away to brush off an imaginary piece of lint, blinking as he swiftly wiped the hurt look off of his face.

Gathering her robes in one hand, she stepped off of the train as soon as it came to a stop. Immediately recognizing the grey stone underfoot, her lips twitched in the beginning of a smile. This was her home.

It felt like the welcoming ceremony simply breezed by, as if there were fewer first years, each name called and sorted as the houses cheered. Giggles filled the Hufflepuff table lined with a long, sunshine yellow table runner with the emblem of a badger embroidered at equal distances. Before long, she was taking two steps at a time to the Hufflepuff common room. She quickly tapped out her house's founder's name on the center barrel of the second row, and thankfully was not drenched in wine. Heading through the tunnel, she burst into the common room, collapsing on an empty bench.

Helga's portrait seemed almost condescending as it toasted her with a golden goblet as Evelina's mind swam with thoughts, and stupidly, she shot a quick glare at it. It had been a long day; all she wanted to do was wrap herself up into the warm, cozy, quilted blankets and fall asleep before her eyelashes brushed the tops of her cheeks.

It felt as if the day could never end, but Evelina dragged herself into her dorm and let herself collapse into the warm pile of quilts that made up her bed.

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The sun warmed Evelina's face, shining red on her closed eyes as she blinked them open in frustration. It was too early; all she wanted to do was roll over and fall back asleep. It wasn't an option though — classes started today and gazing at her schedule only made her want to chuck all of her parchment scrolls and books out of the window.

Transfiguration was up first, and although it wasn't a half bad class, she would have preferred something such as potions, she knew she would still be the top student in her class. A conjoined class full of Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs, she knew the rest of the students were much too stupid to ever even come close to competing with her.

Sleepily raising her head, she swung her legs off the bed, letting the warmth of the hardwood floors caress her tired feet. Like a zombie, she walked into the bathroom, brushed her teeth and took a quick bath with her favorite lavender-honey soap.

Breakfast was laid out in the great hall daily, in a delicious spread of delicacies that many only dreamed of consuming. But here it was, and as she grabbed a custard danish along with a piece of toast, she felt a burning heat on the back of her neck. Looking behind her discretely, she caught a grin on Tom's face before she looked away just as fast as his expression disappeared.

Flickering her gaze to the side, Arden caught her eye in a long, black robe, with a green lining just like her fellow Slytherins. Winking at her, Arden laughed at a joke that one of the younger fourth-year boys had made. Perhaps not the brightest, she still held influence over that house, which came in handy at times...

Shooting a quick smile back at her, Evelina settled and started to eat her pastry in small, slow bites, all the while reading over a brush-up scroll focused on sixth-year transfiguration spells. Although she was a fifth-year, she figured it couldn't hurt to impress her teacher with some extra knowledge.

Someone walked over, emerald lined cloak swirling around their feet, and sat down at the Hufflepuff table. Not even glancing up, Evelina huffed. Arden knew better than to interrupt her. "What is it now, Arden?"

A low, smooth laugh pulled her out of her studies as she looked up to find Tom sitting next to her. Curiously, he cocked his head. "Now, I'm not that pretty am I? I don't quite believe I am a girl."

Evelina narrowed her eyes. "I would say that you're not, but you come pretty close to being female." She hissed.

In defense, he pulled up his arms from where they rested on the table. "Woah, woah. Sorry." Leaning closer, he whispered in her ear. "For a Hufflepuff, you're not exactly kind, are you?"

Smirking, she returned the gesture. "Who said that I was kind?" Gathering her books, she stood up, and not looking back at him, made her way out of the dining hall, not letting his focus on her intimidate her stride.

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unedited

hey guys! sorry if i offended some of you hufflepuffs in this chapter; y'all are lovely, but alas evelina is not and to show that most authentically, i'll probs end up offending every house except slytherin. know that these aren't my opinions, but they're just stated in order to provide an authentic character.

lol, either way, i hope you liked it! it's a little short, but not too much; i may add a little, but i just wanted to get this out there since i haven't updated in literally forever. ily guys, thanks for reading!

i made a chapter private, and unfortunately didn't know you can't change that, so i guess chapter one is starting anew! hope you enjoy!

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